Heart To Heart: Godly Wisdom Woman To Woman

This book is by women, for women. God views things in the scope of eternity, and He can see everything clearly. My vision is limited, but sometimes when I am further along a trail, I can look back and see things I did not see before. God our Father has put us all on the road of life together. He has asked women who are older, which includes me, to be “teachers of good things” (Titus 2:3), to share with younger women — you! — His ways. I want to share what God has taught me as a follower of Christ, as a wife, as a mother; and I have asked a number of other women to share as well. This little book is a fun mixture from many sisters in all walks of life. At the time of this printing, I believe four contributors are with the Lord. Life is not always easy! Although all the wisdom we need is in the Word of God, I’ve hit my share of bumps in the road, and sometimes I have stumbled and fallen. I want to share my heart with you so you can follow the Lord more closely, a little earlier, a little easier. I am praying this book will be a blessing to you.

V. Hallowell

In it all, He always gives us reasons to be thankful. A newborn Christian may also speak to God his Father in interesting, unconventional ways, but still the Father delights in such sweet conversations. Bring God into the picture.

Trust Him to see you through. It is not our physical distance from the world which will preserve our children ... Rather, it is our proximity to the Person of Christ.

The Sun’s Shining Ahead

“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: He that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: He shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth,
and even for evermore.”
Psalm 121:1-8

On a clear, crisp day I excitedly headed out for a distant city to help my youngest daughter set up her apartment with her new husband. The van was filled to capacity. The engine churned as I drove off with the extra weight. Could this old vehicle get me there? Looking to the Lord for His care, I pressed on.

It was a quiet, uneventful trip, but the weather was getting blustery as I drove. I stopped for gas, and as I stepped outside the wind whipped my scarf tighter around my neck. Large snowflakes were beginning to fall. I hadn’t heard about a winter storm on the radio, but then I wasn’t listening to the radio. I hadn’t even thought of checking Accuweather!

The snow continued falling at a rapid pace. Blizzard conditions! I could hardly see the road! What to do? I slowed my pace but did not want to come to a complete stop as I didn’t really know where the side of the road was. Some cars passed me as if the roads were completely clear. Now there goes an accident waiting to happen, I thought to myself. Thankfully, I could see enough to make out the taillights of a truck. I kept my gaze on those lights and forged ahead.

Thoughts swirled in my head. Do I continue going ahead? Do I turn around and head for home? But where in the world would I turn around? The storm gave way a bit and I was able to see enough to make a quick exit. I left the highway and came to a complete stop at a nearby gas station. Someone was busily shoveling snow and I asked them how much was predicted. “Oh, at least 10 inches!” That’s when I decided I would head for home, but before turning around I called my daughter.

I let her know that I was going to turn around and head for home. She was quite surprised, and she kept saying, “Mom, it’s clear here. The sun is shining.” No, she hadn’t heard of any storm. “Mom, it’s beautiful here.” I then called my husband who was in a meeting, but thankfully he took my call and checked the weather on the internet. No, it wasn’t snowing back at home. Yes, he could see a patch on the radar, and since I had already driven for 3 hours he suggested that I continue on my trip and hopefully drive out of the patch! I called my daughter back to let her know that I was indeed coming as planned. “Just keep praying for your old mom!” I pleaded.

Even though the snow was still swirling around me, I took a deep breath, clutched the steering wheel, and headed north. I had been told that it was simply a patch and that the sun was indeed shining, even though evidence around me belied that. Then all of a sudden, the sun came out and the road became clear! It cleared up almost as fast as it had begun. I had come so close to turning back! I almost missed out on a happy reunion with my daughter and her husband, of sharing in their joy of setting up their first home, and of getting a glimpse into her new life. Now, whenever I speak with her on the phone I can visualize where she is and what she’s doing. If I had turned back I would have lost that opportunity.

Is that how we are in our Christian lives? When it gets hard to see, do we turn around and go back to our comfort zones and then miss out on the joy of seeing God at work? Do we get scared? Do we question God’s providential care? Do we question our ability to know God’s will in our lives? Are we always second guessing? “If thou wouldst believe,” the Lord Jesus says, “thou shouldst see the glory of God” (John 11:40). Do we have confidence in His Word to believe that the “sun” is indeed shining, encouraging us to move forward, not giving up, knowing that there will be joy on the other side (Psa. 30:5)? “The Lord God is a sun” (Psa. 84:11). He knows the way that we take (Job 23:10). Do we with renewed peace and trust press forward even though discouraging circumstances swirl around us?

Overcoming is going through a difficulty with confidence in God. Does your difficulty appear big? Bring God into the picture. Trust Him to see you through. Remember the “Sun” is shining on the other side!

Not Just a Housewife

“Who can find a virtuous woman?
For her price is far above rubies.”
Proverbs 31:10

What exactly does it mean to be a virtuous woman? Some have used the word excellent instead. My Old Testament Word Study says, “moral strength, good quality, integrity” (Wilson’s Old Testament Word Studies, pg. 469). H.A. Ironside, in his book on Proverbs says, “Thrifty and devoted ... (she) is a dependable woman; one who can be counted on in every emergency. Capable and energetic with a high sense of the dignity and importance of administering the affairs of the home” (Notes on Proverbs by H. A. Ironside, pgs. 472-473).

Not too long ago a man asked me what my occupation was, and I answered, “Just a housewife.” I don’t know if he was a Christian or not, but he said to me, “Don’t say just a housewife. That is quite a job!” I had to agree with him and felt rebuked!

A brother who is now with the Lord once said, “A church or gathering is never stronger than the homes that compose that gathering.” And so remember, when you are washing the floors for the second time in a day or washing jam-smeared smiles, that your work in the home reaches over the walls like a climbing ivy. God rates your role as a wife and mother as a thing of greater worth than earth’s most treasured jewels. “Her price is far above rubies.”

Who can estimate the value of your prayers for your little one as you nurse him or rock him to sleep? We’ve all heard stories of godly mothers who taught the Word of God to their children when they were young, and it bore fruit their whole life. Well-known men of faith like John Wesley, Jim Elliot, and even Samuel of the Bible all had mothers like you. Teach your children early to enjoy singing hymns. Get them to memorize portions of Scripture, and the Lord will use it for blessing in their lives.

What Are We Teaching Our Children?

“Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”
1 Corinthians 10:31

My sister-in-law is fond of saying, “The life we live is the lesson we teach.” Let us believe it. It seems we learn more from example than from instruction, though both are necessary. Our attitude as mothers toward material things, other people, and the Lord will affect the lives of our children. When we read a chapter like 1 Corinthians 9, our conscience pricks us. Are we willing to suffer all things lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ (vs. 12)? Have we made ourselves servants unto all, that we might gain the more (vs. 19)? Are we willing to be made all things to all men, that we might by all means save some (vs. 22)? Is this our goal in life? Are we running the race of Christian living so as to obtain the prize? Or is our lifestyle telling our children that if we could, we’d just as soon pull down our barns and build greater, and saying to them, “Take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry” (Luke 12:19)? God called such a person a fool and said, “So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God” (vs. 21).

The Lord Jesus has won for us the most wonderful place in heaven, and He has “raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6).

May this hope be the joy and form the attitude that flows from our lives to our children as we run the Christian race. As we keep our eyes on the Lord Jesus and have God-given goals before us, it will have its effect on us and then on our children.

The Birthday Cake

“We know that all things work together
for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called
according to His purpose.”
Romans 8:28

Mix and sift and stir and bake,
What goes into a birthday cake?
Eggs and butter and all things sweet —
Only a mother could make this treat.
Wishes and prayers and hopes and fears
For our little darling of tender years.

I think as I mix with a steady hand,
How God the Father has mixed and planned
A life for our boy, with its tears and song;
It’s perfectly wise, and it cannot be long:
It leads to Home in the Glory land
If only he follows where God has planned.

Now as I sift the fine white flour,
I pray for our son in temptation’s hour;
Teach him to come to the throne of grace,
And seek Thy help in the humble place:
He may sifted be, but he cannot fall
If he comes to Thee as his all in all.

I stir in the milk, like Thy holy Word
Which from a child his ears have heard,
And I pray that his soul thereby may grow
And be stirred to care for Thine own below
With the earnest love of his little heart,
Of Thy loving-kindness, a counterpart.

I kneel and commit this birthday treat
To the oven’s fervent baking heat,
And my heart goes up to Another One
Who had a beloved only Son.
The fire of judgment my Saviour bore
That our son might be pardoned forevermore.

Mix and sift and stir and bake —
Love goes into a birthday cake.
And if I brush a tear with my hand,
The love He gave, He will understand,
For as I’m working I think and pray
For our dear little son who is one today.

— RMS

Where Do You Hatch Your Babies?

“How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the lord: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God. Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.” Psalm 84:1-3

Late summer is nesting season for the sea turtles on the Florida coast. Up and down the beach the telltale paths of the sea turtles mark the sand as the turtles lumber out of the water, dig their nest, lay their eggs, and return to the water. Each day there are fresh marks on the beach, and it is interesting how much data is gathered from the etched paths. Park officials are trained to recognize the variety of turtle and the approximate age of the turtle by their marks on the beach. The officials date the nest and keep track of all pertinent details. They obtain all this information without ever seeing the mother turtle who laid the eggs.

My unofficial interpretation of the turtle marks is that they remind me of different types of mothers. There is the sea turtle who, coming out of the water and unsuccessfully attempting to climb the first sand dune, backs off from the effort and mistakenly makes her nest below the high tide level. The park officials don’t even date this nest because they know that the high tide will erode away the nest before the eggs have time to hatch. Then there is the sea turtle whose efforts to traverse the first dune are not successful, but instead of giving up, she turns down the beach to another point and tries again to traverse the dune. The marks in the sand clearly tell of her struggle. Her determination pays off and she is able to rise above the high tide mark and dig her nest. Other sea turtle tracks show clearly a turtle who climbed over the first sand dune and the second sand dune, all the way to the top of the beach. At first this seems wise, but it also brings risks. When the babies hatch they will have a long defenseless journey and will be an easy target for the sea gulls, who love the taste of baby sea turtles.

Like the first unwise sea turtle, some mothers do not order their homes in such a way as to keep a marked separation from the world. The “high tide” of the influences of the world will erode away at this family. It is a struggle to keep the world out of our homes and to arrange our “nest” in such a way as to provide a sanctuary from the world where principles of the Word of God are taught and the love of God is known and enjoyed by all in the home, but it is worth it. Diligence of faith and an appreciation of the grace of God can guide a home to rise above the “high tide” level of the world. The turtle who laid her eggs far from the water reminds me of some mothers who, in their desire to keep the world out of their home, detach from the reality that one day their little ones will have to face the world. It is not our physical distance from the world which will preserve our children in the path of faith. Rather, it is our proximity to the Person of Christ. Baby sea turtles when they are born orient themselves to the light. May we provide our children a sanctuary from the world and guide them to the Light and to a living relationship with our Lord.

Jesus — Not the Gardener

“the disciples went away again to their
own home. but Mary stood without
at the sepulcher weeping.”
John 20:10-11

It is impressive that the disciples didn’t stay to try to help Mary. They had what they needed, and they went on home. Nothing seemed to have been done to comfort her or to try to help her remember the words of Jesus when He said that He would rise again from the dead. Can you relate to this, fellow-woman? Maybe you think your husband is a bit hard or unfeeling at times, that he doesn’t seem to understand your tears or enter into your grief. He has gone away and left you weeping. But, may you find today, as Mary did, that when men (or other women) don’t understand, the Lord does care. It seemed that all of Heaven was occupied in drying Mary’s tears. First of all, two angels came. She still wasn’t persuaded to leave her grief. Perhaps you’ve been there. I know I have. But as Mary turned back, blinded by her tears and broken-hearted, the Lord Jesus Himself was there to meet her. She didn’t even recognize Him at first, but He only had to speak her name, and her grief was taken care of.

Dear sister, don’t put the burden of understanding your grief upon your husband. At times even the most loving husband can’t enter into his wife’s sorrow. But be assured, the Lord understands, and He knows how to speak the one word to your heart that will bring comfort and peace. Go to Him!

Things to Aim at Prayerfully

“That your days ...
and the days of your children ...
Be as the days of heaven upon the earth.”
Deuteronomy 11:21

It is truly a mercy of the Lord if our children grow up with a desire to follow the Lord.

Remembering those early years, so many failures come to my mind. But the Lord knew how to discipline us as parents by not allowing us to make a lot of money to spoil the children. Another way was in not allowing our children to be popular, just ordinary precious children. Looking back, I can see why this discipline was so necessary in my case, and I praise the Lord for His faithfulness.

Remember that children have feelings like we do. If we have allowed them to get overtired because we are occupied with visiting or working, can we blame them for getting cross? It helps to be understanding.

As they grew a little older, I remembered my mother saying to always keep track of where your children are and what they are doing — “vigilance without suspicion.” Make every effort to teach them the fear of the Lord (Prov. 9:10) while they are young, so that they realize that the Lord knows their every thought and action, whether the parents see or not. Remind them that the Lord who loves them is grieved by disobedience and is glorified by anything they do for Him.

One thing we tried to practice was that after a necessary punishment, the children needed to apologize on their own before happy fellowship with Dad and Mom was restored. If they wronged others it was necessary to verbally apologize to them. What happiness is restored to the offender (1 John 1:7)!

“When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child” (1 Cor. 13:11). We can’t hurry this process and expect maturity before the time. Each child is an individual and may show maturity at different ages.

It was a joy when the children grew to be friends with their siblings and their parents. We had very enjoyable camping trips together. It was a time when Dad was free to spend time with his children. Everyone could work together, play together, read stories together, and sing together to make it a happy time. It was a learning experience to put up with inconveniences, and to do their share of the work.

My parents had a plaque hanging on their wall with words of wisdom that I have often referred to:

Things to Aim at Prayerfully

Firmness without severity
Tenderness without weakness
Vigilance without suspicion
Service without servility
Liberty without license
Friendship without familiarity

— W. Barker

Your Husband's Arrows

“Lo children are an heritage of the Lord: as arrows are in the hand of the mighty man, so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak.”
Psalm 127:3-4

Mothers, did you ever think of “your” children as your husband’s arrows — destined to be “shot” with a purpose? Have you ever considered that as they watch you, observe what you value, hear what you say, listen to what you sing, and take in the same things that you listen to and watch, you are molding “arrows” which carry your husband’s name? They will carry to far places the lessons that they learned from you — not word-lessons only but observation lessons as well. When you and your husband are old, those arrows that came from your husband’s quiver will still be carrying a message to the next generation. Are you being a faithful helpmeet to that man, helping him to be all that the Lord Jesus called him to be? Are you raising his arrows the way he and his God would want them raised (even if your husband himself is struggling presently)? Ask the Lord Jesus to make Himself real enough to you today so that your actions and words will mold your man’s “arrows” with the message that will change lives for the generations to come. “Arrows in the hand of a mighty man” are powerful weapons accomplishing that for which they were “shot,” and if your man belongs to the Lord, he is strengthened with might by the Spirit in his inner man (Eph. 3:16), even if he still struggles sometimes. Stand behind your man and help strengthen him by the power of the Spirit of God. The Lord Jesus chooses the arrows for your man’s quiver — be willing to commit your life for this cause. Maybe you are afraid of losing your personal identity (or even your figure!) if you bear children. Maybe raising them involves handing up to the Lord your personal fulfillment and your sense of personal accomplishment. You need to consciously offer whatever sacrifice is necessary to accomplish the Lord’s will concerning this mighty man’s arrows. Even if it seems to you, and to those around you, that your sacrifice is a waste, do it anyway. An arrow in flight carries God’s purpose of blessing beyond you and your husband.

We know that the Lord Jesus is sovereign and overrules and is very gracious in our lives and failures. In a human sense, however, without your willingness and sacrifice there would be no “arrows” in your man’s quiver, and it is in your power not only to give him those arrows but to influence them for either good or evil. Happy is the man whose quiver is full and whose wife is cheerfully standing behind him helping him raise his “arrows” for his God that they may be ready to do their Lord’s bidding when the time comes for them to fly.

A Pleasant Atmosphere

“Women ... be ... keepers at home.” Titus 2:4-5

“She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.”
Proverbs 31:27

God wants us to be keepers at home. The home is to be a haven, a comfort zone for our husbands. Their job is to provide for the family, and a man feels a burden to do that even if his wife adds to the income. Our job, as a general rule, is to be grateful for and satisfied with that income and to use it well. Part of our job description is cooking for our husbands; and effort spent cooking from scratch can both make a little money go a long way and add to the pleasure of family life. Family meals can be a wonderful time of togetherness and also provide an opportunity for our husbands to lead us in reading the Word of God as a family. (Of course, individual times with the Lord are also vital.) By not eating the bread of idleness, we can create an orderly, pleasing house. If we need help in this area — perhaps we grew up without any good role model — there are many books written to help us with time management and the vanishing art of homemaking. God created beauty, and the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31 made beautiful things, but the most important furnishing for our homes is not pretty things, but a pleasant atmosphere. Time, creativity, and contentment can make a little money go a long way!

Which Beauty?

“Do ye look on things after
the outward appearance?”
2 Corinthians 10:7

“Though our outward man perish, yet the
inward man is renewed day by day.”
2 Corinthians 4:16

“We all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the lord, are changed into the
same image from glory to glory,
even as by the spirit of the Lord.”
2 Corinthians 3:18

“Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us.” Psalm 90:17

If we are honest, most of us care about how we look. While the styles change each year, the demand to conform does not. We feel the pressure from all sides as to what we are supposed to look like. Whether our face, our body, or the style and color of our clothes, the importance of our appearance invades our minds in different measures at one time or another. It can take up time, thought, effort, money. But, how important is it? As women, God gave us the desire to be beautiful. He mentions a woman’s beauty in His Word; therefore, we know it has some importance.

While the external is important, it’s easy to forget the greater importance of internal beauty. There is a powerful and amazing beauty that shines through us when we spend time “beholding the glory of the Lord.” As we begin our day, these verses tell us what God wants us to put on:

“put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27)

“let us put on the armour of light” (Rom. 13:12)

“put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Eph. 6:11)

“put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering” (Col. 3:12)

And finally, let us put on:

“the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price” (1 Pet. 3:4).

The more we absorb God’s Word, soaking it up like we would soak up the sun for a lovely tan, the more our image is changed. It is amazing to think that even while our outward woman ages, His glory is beautifying us. As we spend time with Him, we absorb His fragrance. His gentleness affects our body language, our tone of voice, even our eyes. His joy lights up our smile. His beauty fills our hearts to overflowing, and it cannot be hidden. “Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us” (Psa. 90:17). It’s transforming! The challenge is, which beauty is most evident to those who see us — mine or His? “He is altogether lovely” (Song of Sol. 5:16).

Guilt

“We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28

How do we handle guilt when things go wrong? Sometimes we blame ourselves for things totally out of our control. Sometimes we really did sin. Sometimes it was not deliberate sin, but simply carelessness, which caused a problem. God is greater than all of these. If we did sin, we need to repent and confess it (1 John 1:9). Then we need to accept God’s forgiveness. “It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth?” (Rom 8:33-34). If God forgives us and justifies us, He does not expect us to condemn ourselves. Everything is under His control. No stupidity or carelessness on our part can open even the door of death — God holds the key (Rev. 1:18), and it will not open without His permission.

From what seems to be a tragedy, God brings good. God has purposes of good both for the one who seemed to trigger the tragedy and for the one who is affected. “All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28). This verse does not say, “All things work together for good to those who follow God,” or “to those who never make mistakes.” There are two qualifications, and all believers meet both of them. First, we must love God — and “we [do] love Him, because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Second, we must be called, and Romans 8:30 assures us that we are. Perhaps we will never see the good a seeming tragedy brings this side of heaven; after all, we walk by faith, not by sight. But just because we don’t see the good doesn’t mean it’s not there. God is good, and He loves us infinitely.

“In the center of the circle
Of the will of God I stand;
There can be no second causes;
All must come from His dear hand.”

— IGW

Between the Circumstance and Me

“Is there any thing too hard for Me?”
Jeremiah 32:27

Between the Circumstance and Me

Between the circumstance and me,
A Father’s loving hand
Is working all things for my good.
All moves at His command.
Between the circumstance and me,
A Father’s loving heart
Knows all the problems of the path,
And bears a Father’s part.

Between the circumstance and me,
A Father’s holy will
Is overruling everything
With wisdom and with skill.
Behold the Saviour on the cross,
In deepest agony,
Who suffered to atone for sin,
In love for you and me.

The love that held Him to that cross
To suffer and to die —
That love remains the same today,
And hears His people cry.
The power that raised Him from the dead,
That resurrection power,
Is working for His people’s good,
Each moment and each hour.

Oh, why be burdened then with care?
The love that set thee free,
Such love is evermore between
The circumstance and thee.
And when above the circumstance,
We see God’s hand and ways,
It comfort, peace, and blessings gives,
And cause for endless praise.

— Author unknown

Look Above Your Husband to Him

“The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.”
1 Peter 1:7-8

“Such shall have trouble in the flesh.”
1 Corinthians 7:28

“Render ... due benevolence ...
the wife unto the husband.”
1 Corinthians 7:3

“She that is married careth

...
how she may please her husband.”
1 Corinthians 7:34

Marriage is a commitment, a promise a man and woman make to each other before God with family and friends as witnesses. There may be hours, there may be years when that promise is tested. Despite difficulties, we continue on together to honor God and the commitment we made before Him. This commitment is essential in our relationship as husband and wife. The testing keeps us from idolizing our husband; it turns our heart more fully toward Christ.

Ephesians 5:33 instructs wives to reverence their husbands. During times (perhaps even years) of testing, we may think we see reasons to not respect our husband. It is then that we have the privilege of simply obeying God. We can choose to come under our husband’s authority while our thoughts and our hearts’ focus is on our true Husband in glory (Isa. 54:5). Yes, we are to love our husband. For some of us our love can be wearied. It is best renewed by developing our bond with our Lord, and then His love for our husband can flow from us, shown to our husband in all manner of lovingkindness, patience and hope.

When pleasing our husband goes against our will, we need to happily do what pleases him without allowing our flesh to act (1 Cor. 15:31). We have the power to do so because in those very moments, our thoughts can be so filled with love for our Lord that our true motivation is to please our husband for Christ’s sake.

It helps so much to look above our circumstances, to look above our husband to the Man in the glory. Even if our marriage is disappointing or painful, we have One above who can fully capture our affections. He is the only One who can truly meet abundantly the depths of our heart and soul.

“And when above the circumstance,
We see God’s hand and ways,
It comfort, peace, and blessings gives,
And cause for endless praise.”

There is great relief when we realize that God will hold our husband responsible for how and where he directs his household. We can be thankful that all authority is above us (1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 5:23). Nevertheless, we will be held accountable to God for how we respond to the decisions of this authority. Our comfort is that :

“Between the circumstance and me,
A Father’s loving hand
Is working all things for my good.”

Even when we cannot see God’s good hand in our husband’s decisions, attitudes, or actions, we can choose to believe by faith that it is there. Our heart’s condition is exposed by our responses. Will we choose to look above and in our heart rejoice in God, captivated by the amazing Man in the glory, so that kindness, longsuffering, and true meekness accompany us?

We have the privilege of being the God-appointed helpmeet that our husband needs. Part of that calling is to get out of God’s way, to not interfere with the work He is doing in our husband’s heart. We can be sure God is pursuing him to the end that he might glorify God. How we long to worship Christ fervently together so that more and more we become “one” (Eph. 5:31). Be assured God will finish the work He has begun in us and in our husband (Phil. 1:6). A good amount of that is worked out in us through the crucible of marriage. We are humbled through living this closely with another sinner.

Our trust is in God, like the holy women mentioned in 1 Peter 3:5, “who trusted in God.” Our strength is in God. And so we can believe and rest in the fact that

“The love that set thee free,
Such love is evermore between
[This marriage bond] and thee.”

Put the Fire Out

“Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out.”
Proverbs 26:20

So often a large fire is caused by the simple strike of a match. But where does the fire get its power? It comes from the fuel or wood that is added, not from the match.

Many times throughout our lives we may encounter comments from others that are like the strike of a match. Something abrasive was said, something hurtful, a stinging remark that caused us to feel the heat of the flame. Rather than let the fire from the match fizzle out, we add some wood to it by a retaliating comment, an angry look, or even a cold shoulder. The fire becomes larger, and it burns longer and begins to cause damage.

“Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!” (James 3:5).

No fire can continue without fuel. Many verses in Scripture give instruction as to how we should treat others, but how we react to what is said or done to us is also vital. Have you felt the painful flame of anger? Your reaction is the key to whether it becomes a burning fire that could be harmful and get out of control. Don’t dwell on the striking of a match and kindle a fire that becomes a great matter. The flame will quickly die out if left untouched.

“A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger” (Prov. 15:1).

Sometimes in keeping a fire going we may not add wood that causes a big raging fire, but we do add small bits of fuel that cause a continuous burning and smoldering, even if the flame is not visible. This is like constantly dwelling on an issue and letting it consume us inside, even though nothing was said in retaliation and to all outward appearances there is no problem. But that constant inner burning will do much damage and destroy our joy in the Lord.

Remember, too, that a fire leaves scars. Sometimes after adding wood, we realize our mistake and manage to get the fire out ... but not without some damage being done and some scars left.

What an example the Lord Jesus was while here on earth. “Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example ... who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth: who when He was reviled, reviled not again” (1 Pet. 2:21-23).

“He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth” (Isa. 53:7).

“But He held His peace and answered nothing” (Mark 14:6).

Tell Me the Story of Jesus!

“and He took the children in His arms, put His hands on them, and blessed them.”
Mark 10:16.

Children, yours or the neighbor’s, respond to stories. They are wonderful tools for leading little hearts to Jesus! Here’s my story for them:

There is a God who is absolutely perfect — so perfect that He could never ever do anything wrong, nor could He ever have anyone, like me, be where He is with even one “‘tiny” (in our eyes) sin on them. Sin is actually an archery term in Greek that means “to miss the mark” — anything that does not hit the “bull’s eye” of the target of God’s perfection is sin. [You could illustrate this with a sketch of a target.] “ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” But this God is not only totally perfect (holy — never once missing the bull’s-eye of the target), but also full of love. He loved us so much that He wanted us to be His very own children, to live in us, and He wanted us to live with Him forever! Well, this created a problem because any bad stuff (sin) in us is a huge wall that separates us from Him. So God came up with an amazing plan. There was only one way that He could solve this huge problem of my badness not being able to be with His goodness. This is what He did. God has a Son whose name is Jesus. He is just like His Father, and could never ever do anything wrong, either. God loves Jesus with all His heart, but God also loved us ... God decided to do something very hard. He sent His perfect Son, Jesus, to become a person and live here on earth with everyone else. Jesus grew up to be a man, and still He never did even one tiny thing wrong! Then God did something that I will never understand. He took my sins, all the bad stuff that I’ve ever done, and piled them on His Son Jesus, and then He punished Jesus for every one of those sins! The punishment for each one of my sins is death, and that’s what God gave to Jesus instead of me. Jesus bled and died for me! God was so satisfied with what Jesus did that He brought Him back to life again, and He is now living in heaven! God always sees the scars in the body of His Son Jesus that paid for the punishment of all my sins! This is the most precious love gift that God could ever give! It is proof of how much He loves us! Now when God sees me, and sees if I sin, He also looks at the awful punishment that His Son Jesus endured for my sins, and He forgives me — because it wouldn’t be fair to punish both of us. Now, since my sins have been punished in Jesus, God sees me all clean and forgiven. The huge sin-wall has been removed because Jesus took it away when He was punished for my sin! Can you imagine that He would do that for me? What He did for me makes me love Him with all my heart. Now He is my best Friend! We enjoy each other’s company each day, and He has promised that I will live with Him forever.

In the Bible, His letter to us, He says that He wants to do this for you, too! You need to be willing to admit you are a sinner and receive His love gift, and you can be His child too. You will never, for the rest of your life, lose His love, and He’ll continue to teach you more and more how amazing it is to belong to Him. Then, at just the right time, He’ll take you to His home to live with Him forever.

It is wonderful to tell children about God’s love. He’ll give you the words for each child, because He knows the need of each heart. We need to remember that it is our privilege to tell the story and it is God who makes it alive in them. Every little seed of God’s Word that you sow, God can use to produce life. It all depends on Him. Our only responsibility is to tell what we have seen and heard of Him, and live out Christ in us — He does the rest.

What Am I Bringing?

“God loveth a cheerful giver.”
2 Corinthians 9:7

For years I came to our various assembly meetings quite happily and thankfully but without a whole lot of thought. I felt it important to learn at the Bible reading meeting, to add my amen to the prayers at prayer meeting, and to remember our Lord in His death in the breaking of bread. In other words, I came mostly to receive something, and to enjoy the Lord’s presence.

Then, during a time of testing in my own personal life and also a time of unhappy circumstances in the assembly, a verse was read that spoke loudly to me — Exodus 35:21-22:

“And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering to the work of the congregation, and for all His service ... both men and women.”

I thought, “What am I bringing?” I began to think more of my role and responsibility in the assembly, and I learned that if we are feeling personally responsible for what is taking place in the assembly, we tend to try to help rather than criticize. This brought a change of attitude that I continue to thank the Lord for. He put the desire in my heart to pray for the leading of the Spirit in our meetings, to be thankful for those who participate, and to pray that they would understand our needs. Then a wonderful thing began to happen! Along with “bringing” came caring, helping, love, and involvement. The result was blessing, both for myself and others. As the Lord says in Luke 6:38: “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure pressed down and shaken together, and running over.”

What a precious Saviour we have who gives and gives. I wish I had applied this insight earlier in my own life, so I am passing it on, encouraging you to apply it in your life, and to instill this attitude in your children while they are young.

Our Lives, a Garden

“We should bring forth fruit unto God.”
Romans 7:4

While pulling weeds out of our raspberry patch this spring, I was struck by how many things in nature are like our lives. That fertile plot of soil has all the conditions to produce fruit, just like the child of God who has had the plowing of the conscience and the seed of new life planted.

In Matthew 13 we read of seed that “fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.” We might wonder why the amounts varied so much. But the same is true in our lives as believers. There is a difference in fruit-bearing because of several factors.

Water, like the Word of God, is necessary for growth, along with sunshine, which is like the warmth of God’s love.

Have you noticed how much easier it is to deal with weeds after a good rain, when the ground is soft and moist? If we are reading the Word of God, it will be easier to uproot the sin in our life. And the sooner we take care of weeds after they have sprung up, before they grow bigger and get a stronger foothold in the ground, the easier they are to remove.

If the ground is dry and hardened, the weeds are difficult to pull up. Sometimes they break off, leaving the root still in the ground. This is like dealing with sin on the surface and not getting to the real root of it. We think it has been taken care of, but very shortly that broken-off weed will rise to the surface again.

Our garden does not become overgrown with weeds overnight, nor can a weed grow deep roots that quickly. Time and effort are needed to free the garden of the weeds that are so destructive to growth and fruit-bearing. In the same way, we can’t expect instant perfection when sin has been able to grow and take deep root in a life. Removing the weeds can be a difficult and painful task, but how rewarding when done.

Some may think the solution to the weed problem would be to get a bag of Roundup and spread it on the garden to take care of all the weeds at once. That would be like putting ourselves under the law. In an attempt to snuff out the weeds, the healthy plants are also affected and wither away. “The letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life” (2 Cor. 3:6). There needs to be that daily nurturing of the fruit-bearing plant, keeping it clear of weeds so it can drink freely of the water and bask in the warmth of the sunshine.

There must be diligence in keeping a garden in check, since there is never a time when the weeds are gone for good. If ever we feel we have completely gotten rid of the sin in our lives, watch out. (See 1 Cor. 10:12.) Like a weed developing under the surface of the earth, so there is sin in us ready to rise up and cause us to stop growing. We need to keep short accounts with God and never think that we can control our lives without His daily help.

God wants us to bear fruit. He gives us the water of the Word and the sunshine of His love to bring forth fruit, and the strength of His Spirit to diligently resist the entangling weeds of sin.

“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).

Don't Flaunt Your Beauty

“Women ... be ... chaste.” Titus 2:4-5

“Women in decent deportment and dress adorn themselves with modesty and discretion.”
1 Timothy 2:9 JND

“Keep thy heart with all diligence;
for out of it are the issues of life.”
Proverbs 4:23

“Let thine eyes look right on,
and let thine eyelids
look straight before thee.”
Proverbs 4:25

“Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well. ...
let them be only thine own,
and not strangers’ with thee.”
Proverbs 5:15,17

A chaste wife wears revealing clothing only in her bedroom with her husband and does not act seductively around other men. There are treasures and pleasures a husband and wife find in each other that are for their eyes alone. Sisters, your beauty is from God; don’t flaunt it before other men.

God also does not want us to look for admiration or sympathy from another man besides our own husband. Perhaps you feel you don’t get the love you need. That is the very time you should be keeping your heart with all diligence. Perhaps if you gave more respect and admiration to your husband you would receive more love in return. Perhaps God wants you to lean more on Him, seeking His “Well done.” Perhaps God is teaching you both lessons. At any rate, it is exceedingly dangerous to make an emotional connection with another man when you feel deprived in your own marriage. “Keep thy heart more than anything that is guarded” (Prov. 4:23 JND), and stay far from anything that would jeopardize your own marriage and perhaps someone else’s as well.

Enough Sleep

“In the time of trouble He shall hide me
... therefore will I offer ...
sacrifices of joy; I will sing.”
Psalm 27:5-6

Were you up last night with a wife or mother’s responsibilities? Do you feel like one more time is just too many? I challenge you to kneel by your bedside tonight and ask the Lord Jesus for as much sleep as you need and then believe that He will give it to you. You will then have the full assurance that even though you feel as though you didn’t get enough sleep, you know deep down in your soul (if not your body) that you did, because you asked Him for it. Be careful to give your whole day to Him as well. He may give you opportunity to supplement your time of rest in the day — use those times wisely. Sometimes you may have to forfeit what you want to get done or “me” time in order to snatch a nap. Odd as it may seem, sometimes a nap is a work for the Lord and a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savor. He gives His beloved rest (Psa. 127:2) so that she can cheerfully make supper and quietly run the home. You, my dear wives and mothers, set the tone of your homes. Dip into your resources in Jesus Christ and make sure the tone in your home is cheerful. If you find your weariness, lack of sense of fulfillment, feelings of not being capable, or other frustrations are causing you to send wrong messages, then go somewhere alone and plead with the Lord to change your attitude. Just tell Him that all your own supply of power to set a cheerful tone is gone, and ask for some of His. Then come out and make yourself sing. Singing is a sure way to reset the tone of the home. I don’t care if you feel like it or not — SING! It’s a sacrifice of praise, and believe me it will be a sacrifice! He will accept your gift as such because He, and He alone, knows what it cost you.

The Lord Will Keep

“I the Lord do keep it;
I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it,
I will keep it night and day.”
Isaiah 27:3

I had just given birth to our seventh child, and I’d developed an allergy to the medication I’d been given during labor. It affected my sense of balance so that every time I lifted my head off the hospital pillow, I became so nauseous that I either threw up or wished I could. In my miserable condition, I began thinking of our children at home. The boys seemed to be doing all right. Ah, but the girls, I just didn’t seem to know how to bring up daughters.

“Dear Lord Jesus,” I cried into my pillow, “What am I going to do with another girl? You’ve given me this precious little life, and I don’t know how to look after her. Please give me a promise — some instruction — something — so I’ll know what to do!”

My Bible seemed heavy as I held it up over my prone body. I didn’t dare sit up. I happened to open it to Isaiah 27 and managed to read the first three verses and there, so quickly, was the answer to my prayer. Of course it’s really about Israel, but the Lord made it jump right off that page and into my heart. It was His promise for my little girl, and I’ve treasured it ever since and repeated it to myself many, many times. The Lord Himself was promising to keep and tend to my child night and day.

Am I Content?

“Let your conversation be without covetousness;
and be content with such things as ye have.”
Hebrews 13:5

Never before in the history of man has it been so easy to become discontented with what we have. Every day new gadgets, new styles, and new inventions flood the advertisements stuffed into our mailboxes and emails.

What our eyes see, our hearts soon desire: that new cell phone upgrade, the pretty pink blouse with a unique cut, or the latest knickknack matching the decor in our living room. It’s not long before we begin to resemble the man who needed to tear down his barns and build greater.

Worse still, we can slip into the trap of pressuring our husbands to work more to satisfy our splurges. This can lead to pressure in his life which robs him of time he could be spending with the family.

The Apostle Paul said he had learned to be content in whatever state the Lord placed him; and the Lord Himself taught us not to lay up treasures on earth. Before we make that next purchase, let’s pause to think of the Lord’s soon return and how much that purchase will mean to us in the light of eternity.

If we do, the new pair of shoes may stay in the store, and the contentment resonating in our hearts will reach deeply into the lives of our families.

Father, Keep Our Children

“Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me.”
John 17:11

Father, hear us, we are praying
Hear the words our hearts are saying
We are praying for our children.
Keep them from the powers of evil
From the secret hidden peril,
From the whirlpool that would suck them,
From the treacherous quicksand pluck them
Holy Father, save our children.
From the worldlings’ hollow gladness,
From the sting of faithless sadness,
Through life’s troubled waters steer them,
Through life’s bitter battle cheer them,
Father, Father, be Thou near them.
Read the language of our longing,
Read the wordless pleadings thronging,
Holy Father, for our children.
And wherever they may bide,
Lead them home at eventide.

— Amy Carmichael, Missionary to India

What Has God Promised?

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will
strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea,
I will uphold thee with the right
hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10

What does God promise us? Prosperity? Full health? A good marriage? Children that bring us joy?

Christianity brings many mercies. Those who practice good stewardship tend to live more comfortable, middle-class lives than those who waste their incomes. Those who remember that their bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit, eating and exercising responsibly, are apt to be healthier than those who live indulgently or immorally. Women who are loving, respectful helpmeets to their husbands “as unto the Lord” tend to have happier marriages than those who are selfish, demanding shrews. Those who bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord are more apt to have children who bring delight to their hearts than parents who are unlovingly harsh or lazily permissive. But God does not guarantee these mercies. The Lord Jesus was poor. Timothy had “often infirmities,” and Trophimus was sick (1 Tim. 5:23; 2 Tim. 4:20). Hosea’s wife was unfaithful (Hos. 2:5), and the father in Luke 15 watched daily for his prodigal son.

Why do such things happen? Our goal for ourselves may be to have a comfortable life, but God’s goal for us is to be conformed to the image of His Son (Rom 8:29). Perhaps He sees that poverty or ill health may cause us to lean harder on Him, that a difficult spouse may cause us to value the Lord’s love more, that children who send us to our knees today may glorify Him more tomorrow. It is well when our goal is that Christ may be magnified in us (Phil 1:20).

God's Measuring Stick

“Set thine heart upon all that I shall shew thee.”
Ezekiel 40:4

I don’t claim to understand much about Ezekiel’s measurements of the temple, but a few things in Ezekiel 41 are very encouraging. First of all, verse 17 (JND translation) tells us “all was by measure.” Do we realize this in our lives? When trials seem so endless to us ... broken health, broken relationships, broken hearts, hurting or wayward children ... when they seem to go on and on, what a comfort to know that all is “ by measure.” The Lord is the One with the measuring stick, the One who will never cause His child a needless tear. There is a beginning to every trial, and there will also be an end.

There are at least two times when the man with the measuring stick spoke to Ezekiel in this chapter. The first time he said (verse 4), “This is the most holy place.” That is a most precious thing to Him — a place where He, the Holy One, may have communion with us. The other time is verse 22. “He said unto me, This is the table that is before the Lord.” It was an altar, which reminds us of the Lord’s death on the cross. We have access to the table that is before the Lord because of the cross. As we go through these difficult last days, how sweet that in the midst of trials that are measured, yet perhaps not understood, there are things we both have and can understand ... communion with the Lord, and a table — a place of fellowship with the Lord and other believers. “HE prepareth a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.” May we “set (our) hearts” on these things that He has prepared for us, today!

Love Is Kind

“Love has long patience, is kind.”
1 Corinthians 13:4 JND

Our middle daughter is artistic. As a young girl, she enjoyed arts and crafts projects. When she was about seven years old, she went to a hobby class where the children painted short scripture verses on fabric. She chose a bright yellow piece of cloth and printed on it carefully: “Love is kind” (1 Cor. 13:4).

She was pleased that I liked it, so she gave it to me. It matched our yellow bathroom, so I put it up above the sink. Many times that short verse spoke powerfully to my conscience and prompted me to be less harsh and more gentle in dealing with our seven active children. I would encourage other young mothers to remember that “Love is kind” in all your interactions with your little ones, especially when your patience is feeling quite tried. “Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Glory in the Ordinary

“Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him. and whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto Men.” Colossians 3:17,23

Years ago a friend gave me the following little laminated statement, and I had it on my fridge for quite a while.

Glory in the Ordinary

There is no other way in which one’s life will be so surely, so quickly transfigured, as in the faithful, happy, cheerful doing of everyday tasks. We need to remember that this world is not so much a place for doing things as for making character. Right in the midst of what some people call drudgery is the very best place to get the transformed, transfigured life.

The doing of common tasks patiently, promptly, faithfully, and cheerfully makes the character beautiful and bright. But we must take heed always that we do our tasks, whatever they are, with love in our heart. Doing any kind of work unwillingly, with complaint and murmuring, hurts the life.

— J.R. Miller

Winning Your Husband

“Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to
your own husband.”
1 Peter 3:1

“The unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife.”
1 Corinthians 7:14

“For what knowest thou, O wife; whether thou shalt save thy husband? but as God hath distributed to every [woman], as the Lord hath called everyone, so let [her] walk.” 1 Corinthians 7:16-17

There is great significance in the word “likewise” in 1 Peter 3:1. It refers back to verses in the second chapter of First Peter, perhaps to verse 18: “Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.” In addition, God through Peter reminds us, “If, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God” (vs. 20). Then he describes the unjust treatment Jesus received, His suffering, and His response of not retaliating, but rather committing “Himself to Him that judgeth righteously” (vs. 23). In this way God’s Word instructs us to be subject to our husband as Jesus was to God and as a servant should be to his master. Whether our husband is kind or froward, even if we suffer in our marriage for doing well like Christ, let us learn to respond as He did.

If our husband is not in obedience to God, he may be won, as he witnesses our reactions, by our “meek and quiet spirit which is in the sight of God of great price” (vs. 4). Christ is our example of a “quiet spirit” in that He did not revile or threaten, and there was “no guile found in His mouth” (1 Pet. 2:22). He gives us a wonderful example of what to do when we are tempted to defend our wishes to our husband. Jesus invites us to learn of Him, and to take His yoke on ourselves in one of His few descriptions of Himself: “I am meek and lowly in heart” (Matt. 11:29). He promises us that in so doing we will find rest in our souls.

Ironically, the more difficult it is for us to honor and submit to our husband, the more we have the opportunity to live as Christ did, not reviling but responding in quiet meekness. Let us trust God that the end results will be that our husband will be won and we will truly have been his helpmeet.

Whom Thou Hast Given Me

“Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me.”
John 17:11

As a woman, when I think of the phrase, “those whom Thou hast given me,” I tend to think about my own family which the Lord has given me and my responsibility toward them. Although God is sovereign and has everything under His ultimate control, God gives us a certain responsibility toward our husband and children. Proverbs 14:1 says, “Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.” Genesis 3:6-12 shows us someone (Adam) who neglected to act responsibly. Not only did he fail to be with the one whom God had given him, to be at her side to help her in time of temptation, but his own weakness led him to behave in disobedience.

By contrast, in John 17:4 the Lord Jesus Himself says, “I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.” One can see His complete obedience to the Father as He goes on to say in verse 6, “I have manifested Thy name unto the men whom Thou gavest Me out of the world; Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me; and they have kept Thy word.” He kept the ones the Father entrusted to His care! Farther on in chapter 18:9 He says, “Of them which Thou gavest Me have I lost none.” May this be the answer we can give to our Father about those little ones the Lord has entrusted to us to be raised for Him and for His glory. May we be supportive of our husbands as they go on in their desire to please Him, not burdening them with our demands and complaints, and may we pray that He will increase our talents for the demands of everyday life. There is no way we can do this in our own strength, but in this task of being a wife and mother we can remember that the power is through His name, and that He is able to keep that which is committed unto Him against that day.

Enjoying the Seasons With Your Children

“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.” Genesis 8:22

Enjoying the different seasons is always fun, even as an adult; but having children to celebrate each new season with makes it extra special. It seems like summer should never be boring because the weather is usually nice enough to enjoy the outdoors. But really, I remember as a kid those were some of my longest days. Besides the normal picnics, parks, and beaches, here’s another idea you might want to try with your children.

Write each child’s name in glue on a piece of construction paper and then have him place objects on the glue. Your children will have their own creative wall hanging, and it will also help them become familiar with the letters in their names. Of course this can be done with a design of some sort, too. When we were in school we did this with glitter, but it’s also fun to do it with a number of other things such as sand, cheerios, noodles, beans, shells, pebbles, sticks, or whatever else you come across. If the children are older you can have them do this with a verse. It’s a fun way to get them to remember the verse, and you can hang it on the wall. It will also get them a little closer to copying out the Bible, which the Lord told every king to do! (Deut. 17:18).

In Receiving Them We Receive Him

“And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by him, and said unto them, whosoever shall receive this child in my name, receiveth me; and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth him that sent me:
for he that is least among you all,
the same shall be great.”
Luke 9:47-48

The disciples were perhaps thinking that great works would make them great. The Lord perceiving this thought of their hearts, is showing them that each and every one of them, each child and person who is “among you,” is great because they are precious to Him, and that we should receive them as Himself. How precious this should make each of our children seem to us! And how careful we should be in how we treat the little ones He sends to us, knowing that as we receive them, we are receiving Him, the greatest of all. And as we treat them, He feels it as if we are so treating Him.

Am I Wise in My Own Eyes?

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. in all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct
thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes:
fear the Lord, and depart from evil.”
Proverbs 3:5-7

In 2 Corinthians 2:11 we are warned that Satan is looking for ways of getting the advantage over us, and that we are not to be ignorant of his plans. There was just one thing that God had commanded Adam not to do. Satan hoped to twist this one “negative command” into a weapon to be used against both God and mankind.

Satan knew that God had given Adam and Eve dominion over all of creation on earth (Gen. 1:26). Having been cast out of his lofty position in heaven because of his sin, he was in search of a realm over which he could rule in darkness and corruption. He had envied God’s position; now he coveted man’s God-given position and set out to take it for himself. His scheme was to enter the Garden as a creature under their dominion instead of as a mighty fallen angel. Eve, having never experienced fear, would feel confident in her ability to deal with a serpent that had been put under their authority. Satan knew that if she and her husband walked into his trap, his goal would be won! He would be in control, and they would be his slaves. He would have dominion over creation, and it would fall just as he had. Eve didn’t realize that we become slaves to that which we obey (Rom. 6:16).

Hoping that the lovely, forbidden fruit would catch her eye, Satan drew her into conversation and planted a doubt in her mind. Then, using the same temptation that he had not been able to resist himself (Isa. 14:13-14), he added, “ ... and ye will be as God” (Gen. 3:5 JND). “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat” (Gen. 3:5-6). Eve failed to trust in the Lord with all her heart, but leaned on her own understanding. She failed to acknowledge Him in all her ways so that He would direct her paths. Instead she was wise in her own eyes, and did not fear the Lord nor depart from evil. (See Prov. 3:5-7.) What eternal consequences have been the results of her choice! If we learn from Eve’s experience, it will make a great difference in our lives.

Whether young or older, married or single, mothers or not, may the Lord help each of us to live as women of God, seeking the sense of His approval, not leaning on our own understanding! Let’s remember that this same enemy has schemes targeting each of us as well. Even in the decisions that seem small at the moment, if God softly says, “No,” it’s for our own good, blessing and safety. Instead of reasoning, let’s trust His love, choose to obey, and enjoy ongoing fellowship with our God instead of being distracted and lured into Satan’s trap by some form of forbidden, beautiful fruit.

Still Your Prince Charming

“and the Wife See That She
Reverence Her Husband.”
Ephesians 5:33

Once upon a time there was a young man who became aware of a loneliness in his heart, and a growing desire to have a lovely wife of his own. There seemed no one “just right” for him. Then one day, a ray of hope dawned in his solitary heart — a woman, lovely and sweet. There was something about her that drew him. He came to the realization that out of all the young ladies in the world, she alone was to be his. Over the course of time his wooing won her heart, and she became his own cherished bride. He had his princess! He was the happiest man on earth! Now, with his conquest won, he valiantly faced his role as provider, throwing himself into what he had to do to take care of her needs and comforts ... .

And she began to think, What happened? I used to be the object of his heart, and now it is his work. As time passed, different disappointments arose. Preconceived expectations were not met. As he labored on, resentment grew, and with it a wedge between them. Soon both of their perspectives began to change. She no longer saw him as her prince, and she didn’t feel like his princess any more. How could such a beautiful hope turn into this uncharming reality? Resentment grew to animosity, the loneliness returned, and pain ... .

Have you heard this story before? How can the hopes and dreams of the wedding day become a prison of pain? Is there any way out? Any hope?

We all know that there is not a perfect man alive on earth, but neither is there a perfect woman! Let’s look at our role as women in this story.

I’m sure if we saw in ourselves what others saw in us at times, we would be quite embarrassed. Whatever we practice (either good or bad), we become both better at and more comfortable with. It becomes a normal part of our lives, so we no longer cringe at things which at one time would have embarrassed us.

Let me share with you a burden on my heart. I have seen my sisters in Christ treat their husbands in surprising ways. I have heard women who (only a couple of hours after sitting in the Lord’s presence!) talked to their husbands as if they were naughty little boys. I have heard my sisters publicly shaming their husbands. I have seen a wife embarrass her husband in front of others, and when tears welled up in his eyes, she called attention to that as well. I have heard mothers run down the father in front of their children. I have heard frequent ridicule of “his” family and their traits in front of him. After correcting and putting down her husband, I have heard more than one woman complain that her husband never shares his heart with her, that he has shut her out. Sisters, what are we doing? Do we steal from them their place of leadership? Do we put down the ways that they are different from us as wrong? Do we belittle them or their family in front of others? Do we spend what they have labored for and then complain that there is still not enough? Do we strip them of all self-respect? Do we disdain them? Is this what he gets from the princess he chose? Let me ask you, my sisters, do you love the heart of your man? There is nothing that affects the heart of a man like his woman! Hidden underneath that tough exterior, most of our men have extremely sensitive hearts. In time they learn to protect it with a calloused shield if they have to, and then we complain that they aren’t the Prince Charming we married.

No wonder we read, “Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them” (Col. 3:19). I have seen husbands who have every right to be bitter but are nevertheless striving to obey this verse as they continue to be hurt by their wives.

My sisters, let’s stop dishonoring Christ with our disobedience to Him in the way we treat the man that He has given to us to provide, care for, and protect us. This means our attitude needs to be right all the way to the core of our hearts where no one but Jesus sees. What are our attitudes — the aroma of our hearts? What do our words, actions, the tone of our voices, and our “body language” say, not only to our husbands, but to all around us about what the Church is to Christ? “Reverence” in this verse has been explained as follows: “she notices him, regards him, honors him, prefers him, venerates, and esteems him; and ... she defers to him, praises him, and loves and admires him exceedingly” (adapted from Webster). Is this what you are doing for your husband? God provides even for this need. If we don’t feel willing or able to reverence, God can work in us to change us. “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13). While you seek to reverence your husband, do it as though you were doing it “unto the Lord” (Eph. 5:22). John the Baptist said of the Lord Jesus, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). Perhaps this would be a wise motto for us wives in connection with our own husbands.

It is time to repent and to start, with the Lord’s help, to obey God by honoring our husbands. And as you do so, with the Lord’s help, you will begin to see something amazing happen before your eyes! The sparkle will return to his eyes, a spring to his step, and your Prince Charming will emerge again from what you, for the last little while, had mistakenly considered a toad!

Teaching a Right Attitude

“Through wisdom is a house builded;
and by understanding it is established.”
Proverbs 24:3

When our daughter was born, she had the prettiest eyes, and when her hair began to grow in, it came in little brownish kiss curls around her ears and at the nape of her neck. I could have cuddled her all day, except her older siblings and the care of her as a new baby took up quite a bit of my time.

By the time she was three, she was helping me pick blueberries from the field across the street. When I kneaded bread dough, she loved to have a little ball of dough so she could knead, too. She helped me hang the wash and fold the dry clothes. All day she helped me joyfully. We loved to be together.

As the years went by, her attitude changed. When asked to do something for me, she would pout and fail to do what I had asked. In my mind I excused her because she’d been so helpful during the times we had worked together. Every time I responded this way, without realizing it I was teaching her to be self-willed and disobedient. God says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right” (Eph. 6:1). My job as a parent was to be sure she obeyed me. Obedience is doing what is asked, which she no longer did, rather than being helpful when it pleases us, which she had done before. My failure in teaching her obedience has had lasting effects on our family. I would encourage each of my young sisters to hold your children responsible for doing the things you have asked of them.

Jehovah for Our Family

“My son, God will provide.”
Genesis 22:8

Perhaps you don’t wonder where breakfast will come from when you put the children to bed. There is food in your cupboard already. But it doesn’t say the Lord provides only food. He provides all our need, and we parents need the wisdom of Solomon every day.

Abraham saw a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. It was behind him, and he couldn’t have seen it without turning around, so the Lord must have pointed it out. He could never have caught a wild mountain sheep — impossible — but this one was already caught. It is an excellent type of our blessed Lord who suffered and died for us, without any planning or accomplishing at all on our part. By Abraham’s knife, that ram bled and died, but what shall we say for our Saviour? By the judgment of God He suffered, fully aware, and willingly died and bled for us. Yielding up His life was as much a miracle as His virgin birth.

Yes, the Lord will provide. First for salvation, and what a thrill it is when our little ones confess Christ for the first time! Satan knows that he has lost his prey, but that’s the beginning of other daily struggles. However, every minute of every day the Lord will provide. The power is there. If we parents fail, let’s be like the just man who “falleth seven times, and riseth up again” (Prov. 24:16)!

In Exodus 15 we read, “The Lord is my Banner.” We don’t carry the banner, but we follow it, like the camp of Judah when Israel moved to a new encampment in the wilderness. The children followed the banner because their parents did. Then they matured and followed it also. But I don’t think we can really enjoy following the banner unless we live in the good of Genesis 22. The Lord will provide. Fear is gone. “Follow thou Me” (John 21:22).

Then we read about Gideon’s altar — Jehovah Shalom — The Lord send peace (Judg. 6:24). That was not after his victorious battles, but before! The time would fail me to tell of Gideon. He was a mighty man of valor and his victories were wonderful, but this altar was before victory. Do you suppose this is a lesson for us mothers? Are our faces haggard or victorious? Oh, to trust Him more fully!

Then, in the end of Ezekiel, we get a sort of climax of joy. Jehovah Shammah — The Lord is there (Ezek. 48:35). “What can full joy and blessing be but being where Thou art?” We don’t lose this when we die.

Can our little ones understand all this? “In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes!” (Matt. 11:25).

Maybe babes are less burdened with today’s complications than we are!

You Shall Have a Song

“Singing and Making Melody in Your Heart to the Lord.”
Ephesians 5:19

Do you like to sing? Birds are only one of the magnificent creatures made by our loving Creator. They fly long distances without eating or stopping, they swim and catch fish under water, some can run at 40 miles an hour, and the list goes on and on. Here is one fact that interested me lately. Evidently, birds do not have a larynx like humans. God has equipped the singing ones with a syrinx and guess where it is? Right next to their heart. God wants our vocal cords “near our hearts,” too: “Singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” (Eph.5:19). “Ye shall have a song” (Isa. 30:29).

The Standard of God’s Word

“Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another ... hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in the thing which he alloweth.”
Romans 14:19,22

There were several groups of children on the ice rink. The younger girls were in the center perfecting their twirls. The older boys, racing around the rink, had developed a game of “toss the cap.” One little fellow fell in their path, but an older boy skillfully scooped him up and put him on his feet without losing any momentum in his game. Some older girls steadily made their rounds on the rink. Most of the adults stood around chatting with the other homeschool parents. But, one mom caught my attention. She was slowly and carefully skating around the rink. She was unsteady on her feet and obviously afraid of falling.

As I searched for a lost mitten later that day, I came upon a conversation between two mothers. The “unskilled skater” mom was chiding the mother of some of the older boys. Her comments went something like this:

“I thought that since this rink time was set apart for homeschoolers, I would see children in order and not racing around the rink scaring everyone else. I thought there would be rules about behavior. I think your sons acted in disregard for the safety of everyone on the rink.”

The mother of the older boys graciously apologized for any perceived wrong, but also added that she appreciated the openness that the kids had on the rink to play without so many rules. My search for the lost mitten carried me away from the conversation.

After finding the mitten, I took a load to the car. I happened to come across the “unskilled skater” and her daughter as they were approaching their car. She was complaining, “Some mothers so readily defend their children! Those boys should have been spoken to about their behavior!”

I could not help thinking it was her own fear of falling that made the boys’ behavior seem scary. Mothers, what is the measuring stick you use on others? Is it the standard of the Word of God, or is it rules you make up yourself that you hope will keep you and your children “safe”? Do your own rules cause you to look down on others who don’t follow your rules? It is not rules which will keep us in the Christian life. It is trust in a Source of strength outside of ourselves, the Lord Himself, who will keep us. Perhaps you have had the privilege of skating on the arm of a strong skater. That can steady the weakest skater. The Lord is always beside us to sustain us through life, and if we do fall, He will put us on our feet again. What do you trust in? Your made-up rules, or the loving Saviour?

Home

“God setteth the solitary in families.”
Psalm 68:6

A Home is ...
Where food is good and love flows from floor to floor
Up the chimney and out the door;
Where girls are girls, and boys are boys,
Moms are moms and dads are dads, and God is over all;
Where time is spent and money saved,
Children fret but still behave,
Where noises ring of jubilee,
And prayers are heard from bended knee,
Where joys are shared and tears are shed.
There’s always a place to lay your head.
Kick off your shoes and just relax,
Feed the baby and take a nap.
Stretch the cords and loosen the stakes,
Encompassing all for Jesus’ sake,
Beyond the studs that make the walls,
More than the shouts that fill the halls.
A Home is a stage where History is made,
The characters bent and to Heaven sent,
But while earthbound with our houses of clay,
May our Home be Heaven’s display.

— BB

Am I Teaching Disobedience?

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

It is over 50 years since I embarked on the privilege of motherhood, so I am rather an antique in the way I regarded my responsibility as a mother. Looking back, I believe the underlying premise I felt was, “Train up a child ... “ (Prov. 22:6). I am aware of various thoughts on the verse, but I believe this is the way the Lord directed me: they didn’t arrive already trained, so I had that responsibility to fulfill. Failures abounded, but so did His mercies in spite of them — the Lord had given me a charge, and I had to put my hand to the plow.

One difficulty that tested me over and over again was this: if I told one of mine to do something, it was to be done (without counting to three). To let it go was to encourage and teach disobedience — and it was contrary to training up a child in the way he should go.

When my children were toddlers, the command was often to “Come,” and I didn’t want an answer of “No” to be an option. I didn’t want to chase the little one until I could catch him, either, but wanted him to listen and obey promptly, as we should when we hear the Lord entreating us, “Come unto Me.”

There is so much today to attract and distract, not just the children, but the parents. When I voiced that to one of my daughters, her response was reassuring — “Mother, the Lord who kept us is the same Lord that will keep my boys as well.”

A Wonderful Heritage

“I thank God, whom I serve
from my forefathers ... .”
2 Timothy 1:3

“When I call to remembrance the
unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt
first in thy grandmother.”
2 Timothy 1:5

My grandmother was navigating between the front door onto the porch and the screen door leading outside, holding on to two metal chairs. I should have helped her. She was quite a sight, and the clamor of the chairs against the red tile of the front porch added the dimension of sound to the situation. Nothing was deterring her from her purpose, which on that day was to sit with me in the morning sunshine and have a Bible reading. I could think of better ways to spend my summer vacation. The rest of the family had gone on a picnic, but my asthma kept me back at my grandmother’s house under her care.

“Now sit with your back to the warm sunshine. It may break up some of the congestion in your chest,” she said. It didn’t seem to matter to her that she was now facing the sun and shielding her eyes to read from her Precious Book.

Why I remember that we read from Ephesians that morning, I do not know. I was not familiar enough with a Bible to know if Ephesians was part of the Bible. But if my grandmother said it was, it was. To me, she was the embodiment of a faithful Christian. The reading we had is a bit vague in my mind. I do remember that she spoke about all believers composing the body of Christ. My childish impression was that I did not want to be part of a body; I wanted to be a complete body. But, if I could only be part of a body, I wanted to be an eye. At that point in my existence, spiritual applications were lost on me. Yet later, the first time I walked through the doors of a small meeting room and observed the remembrance of the Lord, a light ignited in my head and in my heart and I knew that my grandmother had been right that morning long before. “Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days” (Eccl. 11:1).

The Fear of the Lord

“The secret of the Lord is with them that
fear Him; and He will show them His covenant.”
Psalm 25:14

“A woman that feareth the Lord,
she shall be praised.”
Proverbs 31:30

A child of God who is in the enjoyment and the happiness of communion with God doesn’t want to do anything that is going to jeopardize that enjoyment. He is afraid of doing anything that will deprive him of that happiness. That is the fear of God. What are some things the Lord promises to those who fear Him? If we are living in the fear of the Lord, that would mean we are near Him; and if we are near Him, then He promises to tell us His secrets and show us things in His Word.

There are many promises to those who fear the Lord, but let’s look at one more. “Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy” (Psalm 33:18). Isn’t it wonderful to know God’s eye is upon us if we fear Him? Ponder that the God of the universe is watching over you in your daily activities with love and protection! What an encouragement! Why not sit down with your concordance today and look up all the promises of God for those who fear Him?

Conflict of Conscience

“[Be] as children of obedience.” 1 Peter1:14 JND

“We may serve God acceptably
with reverence and godly fear.”
Hebrews 12:28

“The wife see that she reverence her husband.” Ephesians 5:33

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask
of god, that giveth to all men liberally,
and upbraideth not;
and it shall be given him.”
James 1:5

If our will ever conflicts with our husband’s will we are called to yield, but a conflict of conscience is more difficult. God never calls us to disobedience either to Himself or to our husband. We are called to obedience ... obedience to the Lord whom we reverence and who tells us to reverence our husbands. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego submitted to the king and to the Lord, putting themselves under the authority of the earthly sovereign. When the king asked them to worship idols, they continued to address him as king but declined his command forthrightly. This was not a case of “I feel it is the Lord’s will to go to the mall even though my husband wants me home tonight.” (There is nothing inherently sinful about staying home!) Nor did the three friends refuse because they didn’t feel like bowing down and decided to use God as an excuse to justify their actions, but because they were asked to do something directly against the Word of God. They clearly stated their position but did not protest the king’s authority. They no doubt experienced some angst and tough moments, but in the fire they ended up with the privilege of walking in the presence and under the control of the pre-incarnate Son of God. In the end of Daniel 3 (verse 28), the king gave honor to God. Later he fully turned to the Lord (Dan. 4:37), a step that was clearly the Lord’s work alone. Like the king, our husband is God’s workmanship. God does not work the same way each time, nor do we always see the results we might wish, but He is always in control (and asks us to keep ourselves under control). If we feel a conflict of conscience, we should bring our difficulties to the Lord and ask Him to make our path straight. He has promised to give us wisdom (James 1:5); and He may direct us to state our conscience or He may show us that our husband is not out of bounds in his position. Although we must always pray, we must not nag, and it is not our job to be our husband’s conscience.

Make Music for Him

“Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.”
Psalm 103:1

Are we willing to be an instrument in God’s hands? Of what good is a silent instrument sitting on a shelf or packed away in a case? It may be nice to look at, or have happy memories connected to it, but perhaps the Lord is telling me today to “play” and make music for Him.” May [I] sing praise to Thee, and not be silent” (Psa. 30:12).

Love and Respect

“The wife see that she reverence her husband.” Ephesians 5:33

What happens if our husband doesn’t feel our love, even when it’s really there? Are we showing him respect? One study shows that if women had to choose between love and respect, most would prefer to be loved. But 74% of men would prefer respect to love. Men need respect. God created this need in men, and so He instructs us wives, “The wife see that she reverence her husband.”

If a man doesn’t feel respected, he may not feel loved. If our husbands get upset when we say something, we need to ask ourselves if they are hearing respect in both our message and manner. Paul reminds us that love “thinketh no evil” (1 Cor. 13:5). If we always think the best of our husbands, it’s easier to show respect. Even if we don’t condone their actions, we must still show them respect because, “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord” (Col. 3:18). It is fit or suitable to show the Lord honor, and to show our husbands respect.

We may ask the Lord to show us new ways to show our husbands respect. We might jot him a note letting him know some of the reasons we respect him. It’s great to tell him we love him, but let’s also show him that we respect him. As we show our husbands respect, it’s amazing how the love we crave blossoms.

To My Grandson

“the Lord Hath Need of Him.” Mark 11:3

To My Grandson on his Middle School Graduation

Dear Brent,

This morning I was reading, “Ye shall find a colt tied whereon never man sat; loose him, and bring him ... and they went their way, and found the colt tied in a place where two ways met ... and they brought the colt to Jesus ... and He sat upon him” (Mark 11:1-7).

You, Brent, are like that little “colt.” You are now in a place where two ways meet. You have choices before you now as you enter High School. No man will sit upon you each moment of the day. In a sense you will be “loosed” from a “tether” that has bound you. But there was a special place for that little colt. The Scripture says, “The Lord hath need of him.” Brent, the Lord needs you to walk before Him. No other colt in the whole world was chosen to carry the Lord Jesus into Jerusalem, where the children shouted, “Hosanna; Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord.” Certainly that colt, if animals are capable of feeling such a thing, felt “special.” But his “specialness” came because the Lord chose to use him. You are “special,” Brent, and the world will tell you that you are special. And the world will take you and use you and give you a little bit of glory until it has used you up. Then they will cast you aside and look for someone else to use. But this colt became enduringly “special” because the Lord had need of him. No one that day was really concerned about the colt. They were all looking at the Lord Jesus. They didn’t notice the colt; and in this life, if you do things for the Lord Jesus — I mean really do it for the Lord, and not for your own personal glory — no one will notice. Certainly the people that you don’t know or don’t care about will not notice, but sometimes the people that you do care about won’t notice either. But the Lord notices. Why do you think that over thirty verses in three gospels of the divinely inspired Word of God are devoted to this story about the colt and the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem? Yes, He notices, and He put this story here to show you the He “hath need” of you.

Much love,

Grandma

Praying Wife, Praying Mother

“Able to keep you from falling.” Jude 24

“When ye stand praying, forgive,
if ye have ought against any.”
Mark 11:25

Sixty-four years of marriage seemed to go by pretty rapidly with a family of five children to keep us busy and challenged. I am glad we have the privilege of praying together. When you and your husband are praying in the privacy of your bedroom, I suggest that both of you pray audibly. If one or the other is holding some “gripe” or “grudge,” you will realize, “Oh, oh! I can’t tell the Lord about this and expect Him to approve.” You will realize you need to forgive, and it may nip some things in the bud that need nipping. “Keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude 1:21).

Continue

“Pray without ceasing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17

“Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou
walkest by the way, and when thou
liest down, and when thou risest up.”
Deuteronomy 6:7

“I can do all things through
Christ which strengtheneth me.”
Philippians 4:13

About 15 years into our marriage, my husband started a new business. It was then that he began the long stressful hours which seemed to go on and on. The “upside” was that our children and teen-age friends always had summer jobs that kept them out of mischief. The “downside” was that more family responsibilities transferred to me. If your husband must leave the house very early and does not get home until “the wee hours,” my advice to you mothers is to get down on your knees and learn to “play Daddy” and continue the things he would do if he were there. Do continue Bible readings until you and the children are well acquainted with the Word. Let your children see that you value and need it every hour of the day.

Without Grudging

“Use hospitality one to another
without grudging.”
1 Peter 4:9

A few years ago I got to feeling “used” by my brethren. We have a lot of company, both overnight and as meal guests, and I got to feeling as though I was just providing free food and lodging for folks who wanted a holiday. I was almost “burned out” on entertaining. But the Lord knew how to encourage me in serving Himself! Over the course of a few months, three different women came and told me how much they had enjoyed being in our home when they were children. The Lord knew that I needed a word of encouragement, but that praise would probably make me proud, so many years later He used the memories from the ladies’ childhoods to give a word that would encourage me to keep on while not puffing me up. One told me that I had taught her to make scrambled eggs. There is nothing about scrambled eggs that makes a cook pat herself on the back, but the warm memories were a boost to me to use hospitality without grudging (1 Pet. 4:9).

To Everything There Is a Season

“For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
2 Peter 1:11

Abundant Entrance

Autumn leaves, in brilliant palette,
Laugh and shake their fists at cold.
Green, the working hue of summer,
Cooling nights has changed to gold.

Look! The leaves, with harvest ending,
Put on jeweled clothing rare.
They the chore of changing sunlight
Into food, no longer bear.

Falling, dying, yet so vibrant,
Well-arrayed in garments fine,
Ruby reds and orange abundant,
Glittering yellow, topaz, wine.

Let these colors stop our passage,
Grab our thoughts and fill our sight.
Listen to their shouted message
Echoed in the Book of Light:

“To everything there is a season,
And a time to live and die,
Plant and harvest. That’s the reason
Why I sing instead of sigh!

“I have fought a fight courageous,
Finished here my course assigned,
Kept the faith and now am waiting
For the crown my Lord calls mine.

“He the Righteous Judge will take me
To Himself. I know not when,
But I know my future’s certain
So I’ll sing, both now and then.”

God alone creates the colors
In the souls of His dear saints.
Added years just stain them deeper
With amazing, clearer paints.

And if death calls home our loved ones,
Just recall the leaf story:
In their seasonable beauty,
You were shown a victory!

— MGF

“Oh death, where is thy sting? Oh grave, where is thy victory? Thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (1 Cor. 15:58-59).

Empty Nest

“His life is bound up in the lad’s life.”
Genesis 44:30

“I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”
Philippians 4:11

Although our husband must always come first, many of us mothers find our hearts bound up in the life of our children. Of course I knew that our children would move along someday, but I found myself unprepared for the pain I felt when our first child left home. Even though I knew she was doing well, I felt incomplete as my nest began to empty. Like Job I longed, “Oh that I were as in months ... when my children were about me!” (Job 29:2-5). I have since discovered that a lot of mothers find this hard. It helped me to remember that “to every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and ... a time to lose” (Ecc. 3:1-9).

Philippians 4:11 helped me as well: “I have learnt in those circumstances in which I am, to be satisfied” (JND translation). God wants us to be satisfied with our circumstances whatever they are. It’s easy to be always wanting what is not. Sometimes we are so busy we wish for a break, and then when the house is too quiet we wish our children home again. Perhaps when our children are small we wish them more grown up, and when they are big we wish them small again. The Spanish Bible translates Philippians 4:11 simply, “Content with the present.” I wrote out this verse and hung it where I could read it often to challenge myself to be content with whatever my present circumstances were — a full quiver or an emptying one, dirty clothes or an empty hamper.

A Role for Older Women

“There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise. ...
the spider taketh hold with her hands,
and is in kings’ palaces.”
Proverbs 30:24,28

The fall season brings an intruder into the house: the spider. Springtime ants travel together on the highways of the counter tops, but the spider chooses her dwelling in the lofty corner away from the busy scene below. Unless you’re looking up, you might not see her. She spins her art work from her bowels and forms a beautiful and functional sanctuary.

Interestingly, the spider is spoken of both in the singular and the feminine. I like to think of the spider as the older women in the assembly, the one who is in the September, October or November of her life. The sister who, through wrenching sorrow or trial has persevered, and held on to the treasures that exist in the King’s Palace. Her web, subtle in design and a product of her inmost bowels, catches those flies that would hinder the fragrance of the apothecary’s pure ointment (Ecc. 10:1; Song of Sol. 1:3). Although she retires from the busy scene below, her hands are not slack to repair her web while watching over the souls of those she loves. Many times she works alone on her knees, lifting her hands in prayer. Her work, largely unnoticed, shows the value she puts upon the King, and one day she will hear Him say, “She hath done what she could” ... .“Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord” (Mark 14:8; Matt. 25:23).

Encourage the Young People

“There be four things which are little upon
the earth, but they are exceeding wise:
the ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer.”
Proverbs 30:24-25

Springtime brings a trail of ants on my kitchen counter. Their appearance is as perennial as that of the daffodils outside my window. Taken individually, they are easy prey. Working together in numbers, and guided by an unseen purpose, they accomplish great good for the community, caching away every crumb they can find.

The ants remind me of our Christian young people. They come to the meetings, taking in the spiritual food. So many want to go together to do something for the Lord. They have the energy and persistence to do so much that is helpful in the assembly, if guided by the unseen Director. Wiping them out as insignificant in the whole scheme can destroy their purpose and desire. Encouraging them to gather their food in summer, and helping them to see their place in the house, may perhaps keep them from the enemy who would gladly take their energy and desire and give them large opportunities in the world.

In the Safety of the Rock

“the conies [rock badgers—JND] are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.”
Proverbs 30:26

Conies, more accurately translated rock badgers or hyraxes, are native to North Africa and the Middle East. They are furry animals which resemble large brown hamsters with large rounded ears. These social animals live in colonies. Among the rock badgers are sentries who watch for danger when the colony is foraging for food. If danger approaches, one shrill sound from the sentry will send all the rock badgers into their rock fortress. Their weakness causes them to rely upon the strength of their fortress. “The Lord is my Rock and my Fortress, and my Deliverer: my God, my strength, in whom I will trust” (Psa. 18:2). Their fortress is not made by human design, so they are not “shut in by entering into a town that hath gates and bars” (1 Sam. 23:7). Rules and regulations supervising the actions of man in nature can never secure the heart in peace. Within the rock badgers’ “rock” there is “a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture’s eye hath not seen: the lion’s whelps have not trodden it, nor the fierce lion passed by it” (Job 28:7-8). The sentries are, perhaps, like mothers who watch over their own little ones, and maybe even other little ones in the assembly, to keep them from danger. The sentry doesn’t call out his shrill whistle to get the other rock badgers to gather around himself; his warning is so that the rock badgers will go into the safety of the “rock” to hide from the “roaring lion (who) walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet. 5:7). May we always point to Christ, our Rock.

Banding Together

“The locusts have no king,
yet go they forth
all of them by bands.”
Proverbs 30:27

The late summer evening symphony is played by the locusts. Their reverberations swell throughout the evening theater until they reach a deafening level. Try as one may, it is impossible to distinguish the sound of just one locust. Their performance under invisible command is so exact that their multitudes play as one. There are no soloists in this performance. They seek no individual acclaim. Their objective is one.

Sing, O Barren!

“Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord.”
Isaiah 54:1

Thirteen years ago, we decided to have children. It never occurred to me that I might not be able to have them. After a year, then two, then three, I started to wonder. Was I going to have any children? By year four, my friends started having babies, and I still wasn’t having any. I kept my feelings to myself. Then one day I broke down as I watched someone walk into meeting with a brand new baby ... I couldn’t take it. I went home and cried and cried! I felt I couldn’t go back and face all the babies at meeting! But I seemed to know, “You have to go back, otherwise you won’t ever be able to face it again.” So I did. And after meeting a dear sister came up to me and asked me if I was having a hard time with the baby thing. I was shocked and happy all at the same time. Here was someone who cared about what I was going through. She understood, too, for she was going through the same situation as I. The Lord knew I needed that! Over the years I have found that people don’t know what to say to women that are barren, so they don’t say anything. I felt better when my problem wasn’t ignored, but understood.

Over these 13 years I have struggled, grieved, been angry, jealous, you name it. Although I was happy for those who had children, sometimes I would quietly slip away with my heart breaking. I had a dear friend tell me that I was grieving. Although I hadn’t thought of it that way before, I realized that I was grieving ... grieving for the children I had never had.

I have wondered what I have done to deserve barrenness. Was it a punishment? Then I realized, the Lord doesn’t work that way. I struggled with such thoughts as, “What am I to do if I can’t have children? It says in the Bible that children are a blessing. So why would He not give me any? What am I to do with my life as a wife if I can’t have children?” The feeling of uselessness has probably been my hardest struggle.

Recently, the Lord moved us from the comfortable little country town we had lived in for 12 years, and brought us to a city. There He made me realize what I am to be doing. He does not want me to be living my life struggling to have a baby; instead He wants me to seek His will and do it. He used the move for my good. I had another friend remind me when I moved that He has never left me! Just because I was moving away, He didn’t stay behind! What a comforting reminder that was to me. I had been comfortable where I was, and uprooting me shook me to the core, making me stronger in my relationship with Him. He showed me that He is my Comforter. Once I realized that, I was able to start seeing what He has for me to do. Maybe I won’t ever have children. That’s OK now. He has given me peace in knowing that there is a reason that I don’t. I may not know the reason, but I must still live my life for Him, not being consumed with a desire for children. It has taken me a long time to get here. But it has all been worth it. I still have my hard days and probably will for the rest of my time here on earth, but I now have peace. I now understand that it’s OK to grieve. The Lord understands. He has helped me to accept the situation, and He seems to tell me, “I will show you how to live your life. Just follow Me.” I felt so lost without a child, but He has made me just as I am to use me for His own plans. He leads us through the hard times so we will grow. Now I have to continue looking to Him for guidance in my life. Once I started to follow Him, nothing else was fulfilling. He is chiseling away at me to make me into the image of His Son.

Recently I had a meltdown at a conference similar to the one I had years ago. Within hours I had two different couples ask me if I had children. At first I wondered why the Lord allowed that, but then I realized He had planned it all for good. One of the wives said she admired me for having accepted the situation, and looking back, I realized how much the Lord has truly helped me, and that He deserves the credit. In talking to the other wife I realized that I can reach out to other barren women. I am praying that you will realize that God has not kept you childless to punish you. He knows your struggles and it’s okay to talk about them. He loves you with an everlasting love, and He has something really special in store for you! Look to Him!

Discretion: a Beautiful Jewel

“Women ... be discreet.” Titus 2:4-5

“As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.” Proverbs 11:22

“A gracious woman retaineth honour.”
Proverbs 11:16

“She openeth her mouth with wisdom;
and in her tongue is the law of kindness.”
Proverbs 31:26

“The contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.” “It is better to dwell in the corner of a housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.” “The earth ... cannot bear ... an odious woman when she is married”
(Proverbs 19:13; 21:9; 30:21, 23; See Also 21:19 and 25:24).

The meaning of the Greek word discreet has to do with a person having a sound mind, one who controls her own desires and impulses with proper thinking, demonstrating self-control, with proper restraints on all the passions and desires; one who is moderate as to her opinions or passions.

In the verses above, we read God’s instruction for wives to be discreet. We especially need to control our tongues. We are to build our husbands up when talking to them, expressing a love that believes all things and thinks no evil (1 Cor. 13:5,7). The verse “Judge not that ye be not judged” applies to our husbands as well as to others and means we shouldn’t decide what motivates their actions. Perhaps they don’t do things perfectly; neither do we. Perhaps they don’t do things as we would, but we can find the good in what they do and praise it (Phil. 4:8). We are never to tear them down behind their backs. “The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her” (Prov. 31:11). Our tongues need to be ruled by the “law of kindness” (Prov. 31:26). Solomon describes in vivid language how difficult it is to live with a grouchy, argumentative, and complaining woman. Let’s do our husbands good and not evil all our days.

Those Precious Early Years

“Doth not even nature itself teach you?”
1 Corinthians 11:14

Some animals, such as fish and snakes, are independent from birth. Why did God, who could have done otherwise, make children so dependent? Could it be because He wants us as His children to always stay dependently near to Him?

One-and-a-half-year-old toddlers can give tremendous entertainment at home, but when we take them to our place of worship, that can be challenging. There they feel that they have to be quiet forever since they can’t understand our language very well. When the children of Israel were in Egypt, which is a type of this world, they wanted to leave, but only as families all together. Children can be taught to be quietly reverent even when they are too young to understand what is being said. And like the toddlers of the children of Israel who grew up and, in time, crossed over Jordan, we can fervently pray that our children will someday trust the Saviour for themselves.

It hurts me to hear people speak of the “terrible twos.” Children full of questions are not terrible; they’re children trying to learn, and by their whys? they are asking you to help them figure out this life. God doesn’t make “terrible” children. Terribleness is when self or the old nature shows its ugly face (temper tantrums being only one example). Children are a gift on loan from God Himself, and I wonder how He feels when we categorize His little prizes into such negative categories.

What fun it is to hear how they arrange words and thoughts together into such interesting patterns when they start to talk! A newborn Christian may also speak to God his Father in interesting, unconventional ways, but still the Father delights in such sweet conversations.

Tucking them in at night is a time when we can connect warmly, and quietly channel their thinking heavenward. Our four little ones used to share a bedroom, so we’d sing together before sleep,

Now the day is over, night is drawing nigh,
Shadows of the evening, steal across the sky.
All the birds and flowers, soon will be asleep,
And I pray Thee, Father, help my soul to keep
Stayed upon Jehovah, nights are fully blessed,
Finding as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

The Loss of a Child

“And he said unto her, give me thy son. and he took him out of her bosom, and carried
him up ... where he abode.”
1 Kings 17:19

“He shall gather the lambs with His arm,
and carry them in His bosom,
and shall gently lead those
that are with young.”
Isaiah 40:11

The pain of losing a child, whether through a miscarriage or as an infant, is very real. The arms feel so achingly empty. But the Lord Himself has lifted him out of our bosom, and His arms now hold our child in His bosom (1 Kings 17:19; Isa. 40:11). We still want to care for and to give to our precious bundle. God understands. He is the One who said it is more blessed to give than to receive. But know that even after we can no longer give as we long to do, God is tenderly holding our little lamb in His arms, and He remains our child’s Giver. Our little baby is now a “treasure in heaven” (Matt. 6:20) with the Lord Jesus Himself.

Stronger Than a Mother’s Love

“God so loved the world, that He gave His
Only Begotten Son.” John 3:16

With your very first breath and your very first cry
You entered a world of love,
And I planted a kiss on your wet, little face
As I thanked the Father above.

I rocked you by day and I fed you by night,
And you answered me with a coo,
And the day that you smiled was a red-letter-day,
So my love just grew and grew!

You learned to sit and you learned to crawl,
Then you walked right into my arms.
I taught you to count and I taught you to sing,
And there seemed no end to your charms.

And many a time as I watched you play,
I felt a love so strong
I knew that I never could give you up
Or let you suffer wrong.

Though God loved His Son with a greater love
Than I have ever known,
Yet He gave Him into this sinful world
Where His love for you could be shown.

He proved His love by His tenderness
In miracles great and small —
But His death as sacrifice for your sins
Was the greatest proof of all.

I love you, my child, with all of my heart
But the love that is perfect and true,
Love stronger than brother or mother or friend
Is shown by the Saviour for you.

— BJI

Keepers at Home

“That they may teach the young women
to be ... keepers at home.”
Titus 2:4-5

“Her feet abide not in her house.”
Proverbs 7:11

The most important consideration as to whether or not a woman should work outside the home is that a couple reach a decision together, seeking the mind of the Lord. But perhaps our younger sisters would be willing to hear a word of caution. In the first verse above, it says a young woman should be a keeper at home. In JND’s New Translation it says “diligent in home work,” so it seems clear that a married woman’s first calling would be to make sure her house work can be done in a way that is pleasing to the Lord and to her husband before she considers doing anything outside the home.

The second verse above refers to an immoral woman. In 1 Samuel 2:9 it says, “He will keep the feet of His saints.” So even in this ungodly world the Lord will keep us if we are walking in communion with Him and in the path that is in accordance to His will. We cannot count on Him to keep us if we are walking in self-will and disobedience.

Most of us have heard that the divorce rate is just as high with Christians as with the unsaved. In Malachi 2:16 we read that God hates putting away — divorce. What is causing this awful thing among God’s people? I can’t help but wonder if women working outside the home is part of the problem. Proverbs 28:26 says, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool.” Working for eight hours a day with someone who is not your spouse can be a temptation to a wrong relationship.

It seems God has given the home as a safeguard for the woman. If finances are a reason for wanting to work, we need to first ask ourselves, Am I being content with what the Lord has given me in my husband’s income? Are there some ways I could cut corners and save? Perhaps the Lord will help you think of a way to earn a little money by working at home. Even here caution is needed that such work does not take our time away from our husbands and little ones–our first responsibilities.

Weeds

“But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.”
Matthew 13:25

In the gardens of our hearts, weeds, like sin, come in to hinder fruit-bearing. I noticed a seemingly endless variety of weeds in my raspberry patch this year, just as sin comes in many forms. Some of the weeds in the patch were quite tall and spread out, causing the tender fruit-bearing plants to be without the light and warmth of the sun, which in turn stunted their growth.

There were other weeds that were small and seemingly not a problem, but the roots went very deep. Sometimes we have sin in our lives that by all appearances doesn’t look very bad. But those deep roots draw water away from the good plant and slow growth.

Some weeds grew together in clumps, making them very difficult to pull up. Often one sin leads to another until there is a strong bundle that is harder to remove in our lives.

Then there were those weeds that looked so much like the leaves of the raspberry plants that I could have easily overlooked them. Satan has many imitations and can make sin actually appear to be something good. Many people have appeared to be Christians but in reality are no different than the imitating weed that will never bear fruit. Some weeds required extra digging to get them out of the ground. Often those kinds left an unsightly mark on the terrain. Sin, too, can leave scars.

Other weeds had some very attractive flowers which made them seem harmless and even desirable to keep in the garden. They, too, were detrimental and taking away water and nutrients from the fruit-bearing plants. In 2 Corinthians 11:14 we learn that “Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.”

Another interesting thing in our raspberry patch was a weed that had grown up under a piece of carpet on the ground. I had put some strips of carpet between the rows to prevent the weeds from growing. But this weed was not deterred and had grown sideways under and across the carpet until it eventually came up and out into the sunlight. Sometimes we think we can prevent sin by putting something in the way (a content-control filter on the computer, for example.) It may seem successful for a while, but Satan has ways to get around obstacles. We can’t sit back and relax just because we think the weeds don’t have a chance.

Would I need to be able to recognize and identify every weed that springs up in our raspberry patch before it can be pulled out? No. I just have to know what the raspberry plant itself looks like. The rest are weeds. If we read the Word of God and know what is right, there will be no question as to what is sin. “Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good” (Isa. 7:15).

A Nurturing Mother

“Who can find a virtuous woman?
For her price is far above rubies.”
Proverbs 31:10

“The virtuous woman was not afraid to get into the work herself. It is true that she directed and arranged for the work of others, but it is recorded that she worked ‘willingly with her hands’ (vs. 31:13), that she rose also ‘while it [was] yet night’ (vs. 15), that she ‘girdeth her loins with strength’ (vs. 17) and that ‘her candle goeth not out by night’ (vs. 18). She not only directed her household, but led by example.

“Finally, she brought up her children in a way that caused them to ‘arise up, and call her blessed’ (vs. 28). She was characterized by ‘strength and honor’ (vs. 25), yet ‘she openeth her mouth with wisdom,’ and ‘in her tongue is the law of kindness’ (vs. 26).

“I believe we see in this account God’s wisdom brought before us. Today the care of a household and the bringing up of children is sometimes despised, as if it were work better left to those who could not ‘make it’ in the outside world. Here we see how God has fitted the woman to rule the house and to use her gifts in directing the home in the right way. The combination of the virtues of strength, honor, wisdom, and kindness uniquely fitted this woman for her role, and I believe God is showing us that these things can characterize any woman of God. For this reason it is hard to overemphasize the importance of a wife and mother in the home, particularly in her character as a mother. When children are young and impressionable, it is their mother who is best fitted to mold their character and shape their will on a day-by-day basis. Doubtless the father, too, must share in this responsibility, but because he is absent from the home part of the day because of employment, the children will be left more in the mother’s care. Her careful attention to ‘the nurture and admonition of the Lord’ during their formative years is a most important responsibility and one neglected only to the detriment of her children.”

— W. J. Prost. “A Virtuous Woman” The Christian Jan. 2010: 16-17.

Helpful Advice for Wives and Mothers

“for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall be joined unto his wife.” Ephesians 5:31

I have seen the importance of the Scripture: “For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall be joined unto his wife” (Ephesians 5:31). It is tempting for a mother not to let go of her married children. Tempting as it is to help, they are a new family and have to take the responsibility themselves. Otherwise they cannot grow, and in middle age they are still dependent on the “old folks.” One father wisely put it, referring to Psalm 127, “Children are like arrows. You aim the bow in the right direction, and when you release the string they are on their own.”

As to parenting young children, “Listen to them.” If you listen, you may find child logic that makes sense from their perspective. Be more positive than negative. You can test yourself by putting an equal number of puzzle pieces in each of two pockets. Every time you make a positive remark to your child, move a piece to the right pocket. Every time you make a negative (“Don’t”) remark, move a piece to the left pocket. See how you come out at the end of a half day. This will make you aware of what you are doing. The Apostle Paul commended the churches he wrote to before he pointed out their faults.

God gave us wills to do what is right. Guide the will to yield to His will, but don’t break it. It is better to will to do God’s will than to have no will at all — better to have a backbone than a wishbone. And never punish while you are angry.

Speaking of wives, we are not the heads of our husbands, as Ephesians 5 clearly states, but are their help mates. God used a rib, not a footbone, to make Eve. Marriage is a partnership. But although the husband is commanded to love his wife, she needs to remain lovable. Once she has met the “man of her dreams,” she should still work on maintaining her attractiveness — inside and out.

Jumping the Hurdles

“God meant it unto good, to bring to pass.”
Genesis 50:20

One day when I was in my 40’s, I woke up with the realization that I was “wishing” my life away. I was looking at events coming up as obstacles, just more hurdles that needed to be jumped until I could “arrive” at a more comfortable place. So on and on my days went as I wore myself out running and jumping over countless road blocks of varying heights, always looking forward to a time when I would have a smooth and easy path — until one eye-opening day when I realized it would never come. I needed a new perspective — a heavenly perspective!

I had been enjoying a song that talked about “Places where Grace is soon to be so Amazing,” and I decided to start making a PGA list in my journal. I began jotting down events, projects or relationships that I was secretly dreading. Instead of looking at them as mountains, I started looking for ways that the Lord could show His grace to me. I viewed them as another place where He could show Himself strong in the midst of my limitations and weaknesses, where I could see my stumbling blocks turn into stepping stones.

I wish I could say that I have learned my lesson and that I always enjoy soaring above my problems in the clear blue sky of His grace. But slowly the chains that once held me down are dropping off and I am beginning to see His amazing grace.

The Sandwich Generation

“We then that are strong ought to
bear the infirmities of the weak.”
Romans 15:1

“Bear ye one another’s burdens.”
Galatians 6:2

Many of us know what it is to be part of the “sandwich generation,” pressed between the needs of the generation below us and the generation above us. Our children have many needs, and sometimes as our parents age they have many needs as well. We must not neglect our husband’s needs, either! It all takes wisdom and energy. It can be daunting to be a caregiver as well as a wife and mother! But Psalm 4:1 (JND) states, “In pressure Thou hast enlarged me.” He can give us rest of spirit even when we feel we aren’t getting enough rest of body. God can show us the right balance between our husband, children, and parents, and also between the needs of those dependent on us and our need for rest. In it all, He always gives us reasons to be thankful.

It is good when those who are available offer help to caregivers, and appropriate for caregivers to ask for help. “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me” (Matt. 25:40).

Mum washed the dirt from my small feet,
And as she washed, she prayed,
“Lord, keep them ever pure and true
To walk the narrow way.”

She washed the dirt from little hands,
And earnestly she asked,
“Lord, may they ever yielded be
To do the humblest task.”

She scrubbed the clothes that soiled so soon
And prayed, “Lord may her dress
Throughout eternal ages be
Thy robe of righteousness.”

And now I wash my mother’s face,
And as I wash, I pray,
“I’m glad she told me Jesus’ blood
Could wash my sins away.”

I rub some lotion on her feet,
And as I rub, I pray,
“I thank Thee, Lord, for keeping her
So long in Thine own way.”

I wash and dry her soiled clothes,
And as I fold, I pray,
“I’m glad we both will wear Thy robes
Unspotted in that day.”

I set her meals before her now,
And as I cook, I pray,
“I thank Thee for the bread of life
She fed me every day.

“She cared for me for many years,
And now the joy is mine;
I thank Thee I first learned from her
Thy way of love divine.”

— Barbara Ryberg/BJI

Casting Meal Into the Pot

“It came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof. But he said, then bring meal. and he cast it into the pot; and he said,
pour out for the people, that they may eat.
and there was no harm in the pot.”
2 Kings 4:40-41

A concerned parent many years ago talked with a godly brother about his concern for his children in attending public schools. He hated the thought of his children being exposed to the bad language and immoral philosophies. Could he expect the Lord to keep his children in such an atmosphere? The brother then turned to this passage in the Word of God. He agreed there is poison or death in the pot, the school system. But the secret of our children being kept is in giving them God’s Word, the meal, each morning before they leave for school. We can then trust God to use His precious Word to keep them — even in such a place.

It is a wonderful thing when the whole family can be together for breakfast and Dad can open the Word of God for the whole family. It may take extra energy and perhaps getting up a few minutes early, but the time is worth it. If Dad isn’t able, Mom needs to take the time to read the Word of God to the children every morning. Count on God for His protecting care. Satan accused the Lord of protecting Job: “Thou [hast] made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side” (Job 1:10). Isn’t it a wonderful truth that the Lord has indeed put a hedge around us and our children? Then let’s trust Him today as we send them on their way to school.

Be a Builder-Upper

“Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands. ... in the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.” Proverbs 14:1,3

“Wherefore encourage one another, and build up each one the other, even as also ye do.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11 JND

It’s always fun to have good times together with friends, but there is a sad thing that sometimes happens. Have you ever had someone who you thought was your friend belittle you? What were the emotions that you experienced? Hurt, anger, loss of trust, disappointment, confusion, loneliness, and feeling devalued? Sadly, it seems that too often in these times of fun and fellowship, it is not uncommon to hear women doing this, not usually to one another, but to their husbands or about them, either to their face or behind their backs. When we do this, we are revealing to all who hear us that we have an area in our hearts and minds that is not surrendered to the obedience of Christ.

Beneath a tougher exterior, our husbands often have extremely sensitive hearts. The thought of the disdain (the feeling that someone or something is unworthy of one’s consideration or respect; contempt) from their chosen one (you or me) can be a debilitating weight. They can easily feel never good enough through our words, tone of voice, and body language; and that destroys them — it tears them down. If you were your man, how would you feel about how you talk to or about him? I heard one young husband say, “No matter what I do, I’ll get it wrong.”

There are many ways a wife can disdain her husband. If we want to be a wise woman, we are called to honor and respect him, to build him up. We should seek to be students of our husbands, trying to learn what most effectively builds him up. Each of us needs building up, and it’s not a difficult thing to do for one another. It should be our joy to do so! Start small if necessary. Even if he doesn’t often build you up, you can still be a wise woman and build him up as unto the Lord. The Lord gives us needed wisdom when we ask, just as He promised.

A wise woman builds her house, which certainly includes her husband. Choose words of affirmation, and expressions of appreciation for little things. There are many ways to express this: “That’s a great idea!” “Thank you for doing that.” “The way you said that made me feel loved.” “I really appreciate what you did for me!” “You look nice.” ‘’Thank you for your help!” “I love you.” “It’s good to see you again.” “That makes a lot of sense!” “Thank you for working hard to provide for our family.” Look him in the eye with love. Make him smile. Make him glad that he chose you to be his woman!

Each day we can practice interjecting “builder-uppers’’ whenever we see an opportunity. We can ask God to help us to be creative, genuine, and generous with building up, and we’ll see the results. The amazing reality is, the more we build our men up, the more we’ll see things that we admire in them. We can do this with our children too.

Remember, to belittle is to “be little.” God has called us to be builder-uppers. Let’s do it, and reap the joyful harvest in our relationships.

Claiming God’s Promises

“Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.”
Psalm 23:4

Whatever your special need for the day may be, you can find a verse in the Bible suited to it. Are you tired? Look at Isaiah 40:31: “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.” Matthew 11:28 says, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Are you fearful? Look at Psalms 27:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” or John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid,” or Romans 8:28: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose,” and many others.

Do you want assurance of your salvation? See John 5:24: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life,” or Romans 8:16,31: “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” “What shall we say then to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” I think sometimes we simply forget to just sit down and open our Bibles and say, “Lord, here are Your promises, I want to claim them for myself.”

Mary: Whose Faith Follow

“So it was, that, while they were there,
the days were accomplished
that she should be delivered.”
Luke 2:6

Let’s learn more from Mary. We find she was submissive, along with her husband, to the authorities. She was willing to travel some seventy miles to Bethlehem when she was nine months along in her pregnancy, not in a comfortable air-conditioned or heated car, but probably on the back of a donkey! Her husband needed to be there for a census (Luke 2:1 JND), so she went willingly with him. God’s counsels had determined that the Lord Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.

In verse 19 we find she “kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.” This reminds us of meditation. Each time we read God’s Word, we’re given much upon which to meditate. The Psalmist could say, “My meditation of Him shall be sweet” (Psa. 104:34).

And so, we have found Mary trusting (“Trust in the Lord, and do good” Psa. 37:3), submitting (“Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord” Eph. 5:22), meditating (“Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all” 1 Tim. 4:15), rejoicing (“Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.” Phil. 4:4) , and using self-control (“The fruit of the Spirit is ... temperance” Gal. 5:22). May we follow her faith and example so that we, too, can bear fruit for God’s glory.

Practical Tips for the Baby Days

“Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not; for of such is the Kingdom of God. And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.”
Mark 10:14,16

Your precious little baby is born, and what a thrill it is. With many hours of consideration in which you dream of a lifetime of joy for your child, you’ve come up with a name that suits your precious newborn and does not have initials that will embarrass him or rhyme with an offensive adjective. As he grows you are thrilled to see every little move towards maturity and you praise him to the hilt. (Now incidentally this little one is exactly the same person that you’ll have 15 years from now. Don’t cut off this praise or he’ll wonder what happened and it will completely confuse him. He’s accomplishing a heap of interesting and very difficult achievements, and that warrants praise all along.)

And that first smile — how it warms a mothers heart! Don’t you think that our smiles, too, warm our precious Saviour’s heart? I think so. Your perfect little baby is proficient in body language, and if you don’t understand that, he can certainly turn up the volume of his wail — I promise you, you’ll finally get it! Hunger seems to be the first cry. Feed, burp, and check him for pain. Pink lines on the skin that are left by diapers might be a warning signal of pain since they may be caused by circulation that is cut off. How about watching where he directs his hands? If he is holding his ears, that could mean an earache.

Above all, keep singing about God’s love, and speak the precious name of Jesus reverently and lovingly in his little ears because:

The infant children Christ received,
Oh praise His precious name;
He took them up into His arms,
He blessed each babe that came.

The God of Second Chances

“Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will
have mercy upon him; and to our God,
for He will abundantly pardon.”
Isaiah 55:7

“A certain woman ... had an issue ... twelve years, and had suffered many things ... . when she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment . ... and He said unto
her, daughter, thy faith hath made
thee whole; go in peace.”
Mark 5:25-34

What do you see when you look back over the past? Many failures? I do. Perhaps as you read these meditations you are like Josiah. In 2 Kings 22, he was presented with a copy of the Word of God. He had never read it before, and he was so overwhelmed with the failures he had unknowingly made that he rent his clothes. God said to him, “Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself ... I also have heard thee” (vs. 19). Or maybe you are more like Manasseh, on the other hand, who had willfully disobeyed God all his life. In 2 Chronicles 33 he repented and humbled himself greatly, and “God was intreated of him” (vs.19). God gave both men the joy of forgiveness and the joy that comes from obedience.

What happens to us when we realize what a mess we have made of our lives? What happens when we realize we have not been the wife God wanted us to be? When we repent and change our ways, God forgives us! We cannot change our husbands, but God can bring healing through our obedience. Although we may still live with some of the consequences of our past actions, our God is a forgiving God, a God of second chances. In Mark 5 God tells us the story of a woman who had had an issue for 12 years. Undoubtedly she had much less energy than when her problem began. Undoubtedly her family had been impacted. But when she came to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Omnipotent Healer, He made her completely whole again and granted her peace. Our God forgives, and He is a God of second chances. It is never too late to come to Him in repentance and submission and start following His plan.

A Warning on How-to Books

“Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also ... for if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that ... ” 2 Corinthians 8:11-12

How-to Books and Fad Diets

What is the latest book you have read on “child rearing” or “being a good wife”? Did those books make you want to change? Did you change? Does it sound like you swallowed a tape recorder as you repeat the book’s precepts to yourself and others? Permanent and profound change does not usually come from reading a how-to book. How-to books are like fad diets. On the surface, they make sense, and there are tidbits and hints to appreciate in each, but once the novelty has worn off, there is the tendency to return to old habits. Profound change comes by soul-searching in the presence of God combined with a committed spirit to do the will of God as found in His Word.

Searching the soul without the commitment to obedience afterwards will lead either to despair over one’s shortcomings or else to dishonesty with oneself that leaves us uneasy in the presence of God. It is true that we cannot depend upon ourselves to perform obedience. But the “magnet” of faith which continually returns to the committed pathway will help us, and we are not without help from above. “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth forever: forsake not the works of Thine own hands” (Psa. 138:8).

Mary: a Godly Example

“And the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, hail, thou that
art highly favored, the Lord is with thee:
blessed art thou among women.”
Luke 1:27-28

Have you ever stopped to consider Mary, the Lord’s mother? I believe the Lord has given us many examples of godly women in the scriptures. One day I thought, I want to study this special lady. Of all the women in the world, God picked her to be the means of bringing into this world His beloved Son! What qualities did she have? Luke 1 first tells us she was a virgin. So purity marked her life. If it hadn’t, she could have never brought forth God’s Son, because the Old Testament had said she would be a virgin.

Verse 38 shows she believed God, unlike Zacharias. She did ask how this could be since she wasn’t married, but when told, she believed. She took God at His word in faith. Then in verse 47 we find she rejoices! It reminds me of Ephesians 5:19-20 where we are exhorted to sing. What a happy occupation for us as we go about our housework! If you’re not one who enjoys singing, then take advantage of recorded hymns. You’ll be surprised how these hymns will lift your heart in praise.

Notice also how she and her husband had self-control. They were married for close to nine months before the Lord Jesus was born, and yet they never came together. No doubt God specially helped them in this area, but still, self-control obviously marked her life.

We find Mary’s life was marked by purity, faith, rejoicing, and self-control. May God help us to follow her godly example.

In Pressure Thou Hast Enlarged Me

“To the chief musician. On stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. When I call, answer me,
O God of my righteousness: in pressure Thou
hast enlarged me; be gracious
unto me, and hear my prayer.”
Psalms 4:1 JND

“We were excessively pressed beyond our power, so as to despair even of living. ... that we
should not have our trust in ourselves,
but in God who raises the dead.”
2 Corinthians 1:8-9 JND

Trials are “temporary” tools in the hands of our loving Father. They are used for the purpose of achieving His goals in and through us, goals which are more amazing than we could ever ask or think.

Here’s a little illustration that may help in our understanding of this. When you are making a frosting rose, you put the shapeless blob of frosting into a very confined area: a strong bag. Taking this bag of frosting in your hands, you apply pressure, just the right amount but way too much pressure for the frosting to stay comfortably inside the bag! There is only one very narrow metal trapezoidal “way of escape” for the frosting, a passage with a shape specifically chosen to determine the “outcome.” If the frosting had feelings, it would probably be utterly miserable! It would really hate its present circumstances of being so confined. It would fear the pressure and pain of being forced out into the “unknown” through the very narrow, ridged, rather oddly-shaped “hole in the bag.” For the frosting, the whole ordeal would be an absolutely painful and exhausting trial. But, as the creator and designer of the frosting rose, your perspective is very different! In your hands, with just the right pressure, and with the slow, gentle turning of the tiny pedestal onto which the frosting is directed in carefully wrapped layers, a beautiful rose takes shape! The goal of it wasn’t the bag or the pressure — those were only a means to the desired end! Absence of enough pressure would not have created the desired form of frosting once outside of the bag, and the “under-developed” strip of frosting wouldn’t have been suitable for the rose you had in mind. Too much pressure could have burst the bag, destroyed the design, and in the end there would be no delicate, perfectly-shaped rose. Neither overpressure nor underpressure would have achieved your desired goal! You controlled the pressure while your focus the whole time was the forming of a lovely, life-like rose. Without the “painful” confinement and the pressure that the frosting needed to pass through, the rose would never have been beautifully formed.

Yes, our trials can often be overwhelming to us, but the goal isn’t to destroy and crush us, but to teach us the secret of totally relying on God and trusting Him in them. He is in perfect control! He presses us in His hands for a purpose of creating beauty in us which will glorify His name through us (just as you are “glorified” by the beautiful frosting roses that you make). When we see the big picture, we learn that there is joy to be found in the trial as we look with Him to the purpose and the end! And so, “Sweet Frosting,” in the trials and testings of life, let’s trust the Heart that has fully orchestrated them, and the Hands that are executing every intricate detail of a “masterpiece” that He has already seen in His mind.

Excuse This House

“Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.”
Proverbs 14:4

Excuse This House

Some houses try to hide the fact
That children shelter there,
Ours boasts it quite openly,
The signs are everywhere.

For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges are on the doors
I should apologize, I guess
For toys strewn on the floors.

But I sat down with my child
And we played and laughed and read
And if the doorbell doesn’t shine,
His eyes will shine instead.

For when at times I’m forced to choose
The one job or the other,
I’d like to cook and clean and scrub,
But first I’ll be a mother.

— Author Unknown

Awake at Night

“On that night could not the king sleep.”
Esther 6:1

Have you ever had trouble sleeping? Perhaps you are worried about problems in your life and in your family and you cannot get to sleep; perhaps you have trouble falling back asleep after you wake up in the middle of the night. Maybe you are too tired to sleep — that does happen! You think of all the things that need to be done the next day and you stress out. You might even feel like Asaph when he said, “Thou holdest open mine eyelids” (Psalm 77:4). King Ahasuerus had trouble sleeping, and there was a reason — God wanted him to be thinking about Mordecai, and He brought blessing through Ahasuerus’ wakefulness. In Lamentations 2:19 we are told: “Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward Him for the life of thy young children.” We can use that quiet time to intercede for our children, our husbands, our friends, our neighbors, ourselves. “God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you” (1 Sam. 12:23)!

Wakefulness at night does not need to be wasted time. The Lord Jesus is always awake to hear our prayers. It may be hard to find enough time in our busy lives to talk to our friends — including the Lord — as much as we want to, and God sometimes gives us opportunities at night to catch up on talking to Him. “With my soul have I desired thee in the night” (Isa. 26:9). Asaph (the one who had trouble sleeping in Psa. 77) ended up musing on God’s doings and then talking to God about His great wonders (vss. 12-14). The Lord Jesus is listening to you, and He cares about your problems. Ponder His greatness and love, and cast “all your care upon Him; for He careth for you” (1 Pet. 5:7). When you are done casting all your cares on Him, you may well find that “He giveth His beloved sleep” (Psa. 127:2).

Roses and Thorns

“Wives, submit yourselves unto
your own husbands, as unto the Lord.”
Ephesians 5:22

For most of us, “submission” is a very difficult word. But we can think of our perfect example — our Lord Jesus Christ. The scripture tells us He was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin, and that He said, “I do always those things that please the Father” (John 8:29). Shouldn’t our desire be to pattern our lives after His? When we were raising our children, a very special older sister came to spend a day with me to help me. Even then, I wondered about the word submission. So, I asked her what her definition of submission was. She thought a bit and then said, “I cannot give you a chapter and verse that would answer your question, but I can give you an example in my own life of how the Lord taught me submission.” Of course I was all ears because even the Lord Jesus in His ministry used examples and parables to teach. What she said has been a great help to me.

She and her husband had several children, and when her husband was in his late 50’s or early 60’s the Lord called him Home to Himself. It was such a shock that she couldn’t get over it for years. She kept asking the Lord why, when she needed him so much, did the Lord take him from her and her children, who all needed him. Sometimes, though she did not want to be bitter, bitterness would begin to intrude.

One day, as she happened to be standing in a rose garden, she cried, “Please, Lord, can You give me a reason?” Now although the roses were very beautiful to look at, they had many thorns on their stems. As she looked at them, it was as if the Lord said, “I have laid you on a bed of roses that have many, many hurtful thorns among them. If you lie still and rest in Me the thorns won’t hurt you nearly as badly, but if you struggle they will continue to go deep.” She realized that God was teaching her to rest under His loving hand. “Sit still my daughter” (Ruth 3:18). “Be still and know that I am God” (Psa. 46:10). “That which I know not teach Thou me” (Job 34:32).

No Perfect Parents

“O our God ... we have no might ... neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee.”
2 Chronicles 20:12

In those first hours after your baby is born, the positive joy you experience may alternate with fear of the responsibility that you have taken on as parents of this helpless babe. What have we done, bringing another little one into this world? We are not up to this task, you may be thinking. I know my husband and I had thoughts much like this. I once read the following in a book for new parents:

“You need to realize that you cannot protect your baby from everything. You are entrusted with your child for a short period and need to help him build skills he needs so he can go out on his own and survive the best he can. A good parent is not one who has all the rules and solutions; it is one who says I have to get my child ready for the world. Because whatever you don’t teach your child, life will, and life is not as kind.”

I would restate this excerpt with a Christian perspective as follows:

God knows that you are not perfect. Don’t forget that. There is no such thing as a perfect parent. “He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust” (Psa. 103:14). We can count on Him!

Your time with your children is short. “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16). Use the short time you have wisely.

Presenting Christ to your children, in word and pattern, is your primary task. You need to get them ready for the next world! “And they brought unto Him also infants, that He would touch them” (Luke 18:15). When they take that step of faith and believe on the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, then the indwelling Spirit will be able to guide and correct them. “Who teacheth like Him?” (Job 36:22).

By adulthood, your sons and daughters should be ready to say goodbye to you, and to handle life on their own. They will make mistakes; didn’t you? It is time for you to hand over the full responsibility for their lives to them. “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 John 4).

Life may not be kind, but let us take comfort that we have a God “of great kindness” (Jonah 4:2). We can trust our children to this One. God is so good!

What Kind of Woman Are You? Part I

Virtuous Woman
Vs. Foolish Woman

“Every Wise Woman Buildeth Her House”
(Prov. 14:1).

“but the Foolish Plucketh
It Down With Her Hands”
(Prov. 14:1).

“A virtuous woman ... her price is far above rubies” (Prov. 31:10).

“As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman without discretion” (Prov. 11:22).

“A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband” (Prov. 12:4). “The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her” (Prov. 31:11).

“She that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones” (Prov. 12:4).

“Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land” (Prov. 31:23).

“A foolish woman ... sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in high places of the city, to call passengers who go right on their ways” (Prov. 9:13-15).

“Her children rise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. ... Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised” (Prov. 31:28,30).

“A strange woman ... her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell” (Prov. 5:3-5).

“Teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands” (Titus 2:4-5).

“She that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband” (1 Cor. 7:34).

“The strange woman ... remove thy way far from her ... lest thou give thine honor unto others, and thy years unto the cruel: lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labors be in the house of a stranger; and thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed” (Prov. 5:3,8-11).

“Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe” (Prov. 5:19).

“It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman” (Prov. 21:19).

What Kind of Woman Are You? Part II

“A virtuous woman ... seeketh wool, and flax,
and worketh willingly with her hands.”
Proverbs 31:10,13

“She that liveth in pleasure
is dead while she liveth.”
1 Timothy 5:6

“ ... well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints’ feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work” (1 Tim. 5:10).

“She hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been slain by her. Her house is the way to hell” (Prov. 7:26-27).

“Women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; ... (which becometh women professing godliness)” (1 Tim. 2:9-10).

“A woman with the attire of a harlot, and subtile of heart” (Prov. 7:10).

“The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit ... is in the sight of God of great price” (1 Peter 3:4).

“She is loud and stubborn” (Prov. 7:11).

“She looketh well to the ways of her household” (Prov. 31:27).

“ ... idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not” (1 Tim. 5:13).

“She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness” (Prov. 31:26).

“She flattereth with her words” (Prov. 7:5).

Footprints (Adapted)

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”
Psalm 133:1

An Adaption of
Footprints in the Sand

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he had just been saved and the Lord said to him, “My dear child, I want you to walk right beside Me all your life.”

The man answered, “Yes, Lord, I do want to walk with You.”

They started off across the desert. The man looked back and could see two sets of footprints in the sand, but soon, when he glanced back he could see more than two sets of footprints. He saw many other footprints, and he noticed that a lot of other people were walking with them, and some of them weren’t so nice.

He said, “Lord, who are all these others walking with us? Some of them are scruffy looking, and they get in my way and bump into me. One even knocked me down!”

“Yes, My child. I know they sometimes bother you, but do you remember when you were thirsty and one of them gave you a drink? And the time you fell, one of them helped you up and dusted you off? These are My children, and if you want to walk with Me, you must learn to walk with them also.”

So they all walked on, across the desert sand.

"Jesus Is Awesome"

“All bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded
out of His mouth.”
Luke 4:22

“When the multitudes saw it,
they marveled, and glorified God.”
Matt. 9:8

Not long ago, I had the opportunity to speak from God’s Word to eleven teenage girls. When we finished, Jessie spoke up with wonder in her voice. “Wow, Jesus is awesome.”

Later, I pondered what it was that made a teenage girl marvel. After all, only humans marvel at things. When was the last time you saw an animal marvel at sunsets, metaphors, or symphonies?

But then again, how long has it been since the teenagers around you have marveled at the Lord Jesus? I decided that it was simply observation that brought out the wonder in Jessie’s voice. We had read and talked about Jesus in the gospels, much like the multitudes who saw and marveled. Observation of a sunset makes us marvel, and observation of the Lord Jesus in the Word of God makes us say things like, “Wow, Jesus is awesome.”

If we don’t take the time to read through the gospels, we’ll come up short in our wondering at the gracious words which came out of His mouth. If we skip over the Psalms, we will not be able to marvel at the Lord Jesus’ deep feelings revealed there. If we neglect the epistles, we miss the opportunity to observe and wonder at the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure.

So as you look into the Word of God with your children, see if they can spot things that make them marvel. Ask them to find something in the chapter that they admire about Jesus. It won’t be long before you’ll hear one of them say, “Jesus is awesome.”

Lay It All at His Feet

“Know ye not that ... ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

As you begin this day, or as you try to catch your breath somewhere between the beginning and the end of this day, take a minute to remind yourself of what it is that God Himself has given you to do for Him — your mission. You, ladies, young and old, married or not, are God’s missionaries. A “missionary” must consciously lay his life at the feet of Jesus Christ. If you are to be free from distraction from your true mission and from repeated disappointment, you must lay down what you want to lay down and what you don’t want to lay down. Oftentimes, however, as ladies in a home setting we don’t stop and consciously lay down the things we think we “need” to function in everyday life. What is it that you feel you desperately need to survive today? Is it sleep after being up umpteen times last night? Is it relief from the burden of agony as you watch your child struggle? Is it special compliments from your husband or family to make you feel worthwhile? Is it some “me” time? Is it just a break — a simple vacation, or perhaps a little personal fulfillment — something that makes you feel like you are a capable human being? Whatever it is that you are not getting, that you think you need, that is what you need to lay at His feet today. Consciously say your perceived need(s) out loud as you place it (or them) there. Then get up off your knees and believe that He heard you. (He did whether you believe it or not, so you might as well believe it and get the benefits!) If you really do need what you placed at His feet, you can trust Him to give it back to you (without your fighting or insisting, by the way). If you do not really need it to accomplish your mission for Him, He may or may not give it back. Either way you will get the peace that comes from not having to “fight” for it — either with God Himself or with some human that you think is withholding it from you. This peace leaves you free, mentally and often physically, to pour your all into the work that the Lord has given you to do without unneeded distraction (the Lord knows there are plenty of needed ones), whether your duties are those of a wife, mother, daughter, grandmother, caregiver, or some other role. He will indeed give you all that you need today, and you will praise Him for it because you consciously laid those things at His feet. You know what is still at His feet, and you know what He gave back to you. “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).

Interceding for Our Children

“and Moses said unto Joshua, choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand ... . and it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.”
Exodus 17:9,11

By the time of this story, Moses had already had several experiences in which God had told him to take the rod of God in his hand and God would do a miracle. The first time we read of the rod in Moses’ hand is in Exodus 4, where the Lord has him cast it on the ground and it becomes a serpent. Then in verse 17 of this same chapter, it says the Lord told Moses to take the rod and that with it he would do signs; and indeed it was used in several of the plagues. In Exodus 14:16 we read that the Lord told him to “lift ... up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.”

In our verse we read that there was a terrible battle between the Amalekites and the children of Israel, and then Moses said he would take the rod of God. I wonder if he thought he would simply wave it over the battlefield below him and God would do another miracle in rescuing the children of Israel from the hand of their enemy. Instead Moses held the rod up until he was weary. When his arms got tired and he put them down to rest, the Amalekites prevailed. The only way for there to be a victory for the people he loved was for him to keep his hands, with the rod, lifted towards the heavens.

In the Scriptures we find that the Amalekites speak to us of our sinful flesh. We have to be willing to put hard work into our prayer life to see our children have a victory over the flesh. We can’t just hope and wave a wand. It may take hours of intercessory prayer before we see God come in and give them victory over their flesh.

Spend and Be Spent

“I will very gladly spend and be spent for you.” 2 Corinthians 12:15

“I can do all things through Christ
which strengtheneth me.”
Philippians 4:13

“She that is married careth ...
how she may please her husband.”
1 Corinthians 7:34

“A virtuous woman ... shall rejoice in time to come.”
Proverbs 31:10,25

Although a satisfied husband will likely have more energy to meet his wife’s emotional needs, this should not be our reason for loving him. True love is about giving, not getting. God wants a wife to give her husband 100% even if she doesn’t feel that she is getting 100% in return. If our strength and our supply of love seem empty because our reservoir is not being replenished by our husband, we can still go to God’s well and drink of His inexhaustible supply of love and strength. Then we will have the grace to give when it doesn’t seem deserved, and the strength to give when we would otherwise be drained. Remember, God is the One who created us to fulfill our husbands, and God is no man’s debtor.

Teach Us to Number Our Days

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”
Psalm 90:12

A Tale That Is Told

Seconds, minutes, hours, years,
March toward history from today,
Each breath and heartbeat adding time
To our already-lengthened stay.

Summers pass, as soon the fall.
We grow as grass, are cut as hay.
Threescore and ten, and if by strength
Fourscore, our years soon fly away.

The swift we see win not the race,
Nor always strong the battle gain,
But “time and chance happen to all,”
So reasons earthly man, in vain.

With our Lord one day is long,
A thousand years, and yet these years
Seem as one day to Him Who sees
The whole, and guides through joys or tears.

From birth our promised days are “few
And full of trouble,” Job observes.
So teach us Lord to count our days
And wiser be, for Thee we serve.

Our youthful years are none too soon
To early seek and find the Lord:
Faith’s author and completer — Christ,
Who’s one with the Creator God.

What kind of children ought we be
Beside the One Who knows our frame,
Remembers we are dust and sends
The healing Spirit in His Name?

The flowers fade and lose their scent,
And moths and rust the treasure mar.
Oh, may we early learn, and well,
Untarnishable wealth to store!

— MGF

An Ordered Path

“Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.”
Proverbs 16:3

Shortly after we were married, I was wondering how I could be sure I had the Lord’s mind in what I did each day. The wash needed to be done, and the shopping and cleaning, but how could I be sure I had His will in all that I did? Where should I shop? When should I scrub the tub? And what should I do when my chores were finished?

I mentioned this to my husband, and he pointed out this verse to me. He said that if we commit our works unto the Lord (the things that need to be done that day), He will order and direct our thoughts to the smallest detail. We can go forward counting on Him to allow us to think and plan according to His will.

And so as the day, the week, and even the year lies ahead of us, let’s commit it all to Him and be assured that He will direct our path — even what to make for supper tonight. He knows all we have to do and He loves to walk beside us each step of the day. “Casting ALL your care upon Him; for He careth for you” (1 Pet. 5:7). “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass” (Psa. 37:5). And so pray, plan, and work! Enjoy your work and do it as unto the Lord.

Not for Ourselves

“He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15

None of us naturally wants to live a life “not unto ourselves.” Most magazine articles will tell you that you are number one. They say to be sure you look after your own needs first, and that whatever you do, you deserve appreciation and applause. I do hope your husband gives you this loving affirmation! It teaches your children the same lovely trait, and in our daily actions we are the role models for our children in their future marriages if the Lord leaves us here. However, if we don’t receive appreciation, we are not excused from this verse!

Scripture always gives us the positive as well as the negative, and if it is not unto ourselves, then it is unto Him. This life lived for others cannot be done in our own strength, but we have the assurance that it is “Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” (Gal. 2:20). Isn’t that better than getting our own way?

Envy, a Rotten Root

“A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.”
Proverbs 14:30

“I have a present for my little boy,” thought mother, “but now I must buy a present for each one, or they will think I don’t love them.”

This may seem to be a nice thought, for our children must feel loved, every one equally. But it may be a wrong thought, just to escape family envy. Envy can certainly build up over the years. Let’s face it now.

You remember when Gideon won a great victory over the Midianites in Judges 7, with three hundred men whose faithful obedience sent the terrified enemy fleeing in all directions and fighting one another. Then Gideon sent messengers to Ephraim, “Come down against Midian”; and they came, catching the fugitives at the waters of Jordan, killing the two enemy leaders, thus sharing the great victory.

Then the men of Ephraim said to Gideon, “Why didn’t you call us when you first went to fight?” and they disputed sharply. Do you recognize this? It’s that ugly emotion called envy. We wanted to share the whole victory, not just the tail end! We wanted the satisfaction and the applause for the whole thing. That was the root of the sharp dispute.

Now what could Gideon do? He spoke well of their efforts. “What was I able to do in comparison of you?” he said. He praised them for their share in the victory, and their spirit was appeased. The praise comforted them, and the quarrel was over. But the envious spirit that started the quarrel was not judged.

Do you see? You may smooth out the problem and restore harmony in the family, but it will not judge the root. It was God’s decision that Gideon should fight first, without calling helpers. You and I need to learn to submit to God’s decision even if it puts us in a lower place. In the measure in which we have accepted this, we can also teach it to our children.

The men of Ephraim had a similar quarrel with Jephthah in chapter 12. “Why didn’t you call us to the battle?” But Jephthah did not have a kind answer. He caught them as they were crossing the fords of Jordan, and killed 42,000 Ephraimites! The envy which was smoothed over but unjudged in chapter 7 caused a huge slaughter in chapter 12.

How shall we mothers judge envy? First I think we have to judge ourselves and be content with whatever place the Lord has given to us. Then we must teach our children that we are members of the body of Christ, and God is never mistaken in His choice. Whether it’s a prominent place or hidden place, rewarded now or rewarded later, let us accept with thankfulness and joy whatever place He gives to us. God is always right!

Feeding Our Tender Plants

“Who hath believed our report? And to whom
is the arm of the Lord revealed? For He shall
grow up before Him as a tender plant,
and as a root out of a dry ground”
Isaiah 53:1-2

“That our sons may be as plants
grown up in their youth.”
Psalm 144:12

Except in the case of the blessed Lord Jesus, the dry ground of this earth does not produce a tender plant. This earth had no nourishment for the Son of God. He was from above (John 8:23), and the motive and mission of His life was to do the will of His Father and to finish that work (John 4:34). The tenderness of the plant belied the strength of the arm that it revealed. Man, on the contrary, is “like to vanity” (Psa.144:4). He needs the “arm of the Lord” (Isa. 53:1) for his deliverance: “Send Thine hand from above; rid me, and deliver me” (Psa. 144:7). Amazingly, it is in this environment that “our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth” (Psa.144:12). How can any of this be? It is through the blessed Lord, our strength, “which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight” (Psa. 144:1).

The “garners” must be full (Psa. 144:13) to feed the children. A depleted storehouse results in famine of soul. Is it possible that our children might more readily decide to feed in the fields of Moab (Ruth 1:1), if the plowing, sowing, and reaping are not done at home? The “oxen” (Psalm 144:14) are for the cultivation of the field to fill the garners and subsequently provide food for the children so that there might not be any “going out” to the fields of Moab in search of fulfillment. And if the “sacrifice and service of your faith” (Phil. 2:17) be offered up, “Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the Lord” (Psa.144:15).

Laboring Together

“Help those women which labored
with me in the gospel.”
Philippians 4:3

What a wonderful experience to be able to “labor in the gospel.” Sharing the good news of salvation is a wonderful privilege. Remember though, that it is not only done in our good clothes Lord’s Day evening, at a gospel meeting. Children enjoy being involved in the preparation for a Daily Vacation Bible School or a craft class for the neighborhood children. They can sharpen the pencils, help set out the paints, or help bake the cookies. Then they can pray with you before the neighbors arrive. It is an experience they will always remember. Some of my earliest and happiest childhood memories are of one hundred children in our basement singing, “What can wash away my sins?” There was a lot of preparation ahead of time by my mother before the back door opened to the waiting children on those cold winter nights.

The only motive for service is love (See 2 Cor. 5:14).

Obedient Wives

“Women ... be ... obedient to
their own husbands.”
Titus 2:4-5

“As the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.” Ephesians 5:24

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

“for whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed
to the image of His son.”
Romans 8:29

God tells us wives to be obedient to our husbands. Obedience from the heart is more than just the right motions or the absence of defiance. It is choosing to support our husbands and cheerfully recognize that they are the head of the family. We should pray for them, and we may share our thoughts and insights with them, but we need to remember God’s orderly plan.

Sarah is given as an example to us, and she called her husband “my lord” even in her silent thoughts (Gen. 18:12). It has been said that a man marries a wife expecting her never to change, and a woman marries a husband expecting to change him, but this is not a Christian perspective. We can build them up positively with our love and devotion, because a man naturally responds to a woman who thinks that he is number one; but God doesn’t ask us to change our husbands’ personalities. Your husband is God’s workmanship — not yours. We don’t know what God is doing, and our efforts to change our husband may only be interfering with God’s plan to conform him to the image of the Lord Jesus.

She Has Done What She Could

“She hath done what she could.” Mark 14:8

The Lord Jesus gave one of the highest compliments in this verse to Mary. “She hath done what she could” (Mark 14:8). This challenges our hearts. How often we fail and don’t measure up to doing all that we could or should.

Colossians 3:23-24 also encourages us to do our best for the Lord and our family. “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord ... for ye serve the Lord Christ.” Whether it’s preparing a meal or cleaning my home, I can do it heartily to the Lord. Doing my daily chores for the Lord adds nobility to a task that can otherwise be drudgery. It reminds me of the first and last words of a hymn:

Give of your best to the Master,
Give of the strength of your youth ...
Give Him your heart’s adoration;
Give Him the best that you have.

— Howard B. Grose

Selah

“Selah.” Psalms

Some days, you as a mother, may feel like all you are doing is running from one task to the next with hardly a break in between. I remember those days. But one day, as I was reading the Psalms, I came across the little word Selah, which in the margin reads, “Pause,” or as another has rendered it, “Pause, and calmly think of that.” So, if you feel overwhelmed, it is good to take a deep breath, or two, and pause, and calmly think ... and let the Spirit bring a Psalm or hymn or verse to your mind to refresh you.

Give Him the First Cake

“Make me thereof a little cake first.”
1 Kings 17:13

Perhaps you are familiar with the story of Elijah and how the Lord sent him to the widow of Zarephath. There was a terrible drought in the land, and everyone was starving. This widowed mother was down to her last pinch of meal and drop of oil. Most of us don’t have any idea what those extremities feel like. Elijah told the widow to make him a cake first, before preparing for her starving boy. She had to grasp in faith that the oil and meal would not fail, as promised.

Let’s never look after ourselves first and then give the Lord the “second cake.” We can learn practical lessons from this. We can rise early enough that we have time to meet the Lord of glory before we begin our day. We can forego a pleasure to visit someone who is in need of encouragement or the gospel. And our children can learn the joy of giving up their own bedroom to a visitor, including Grandma. (We who benefit from this kind of sharing can leave a small treat at the bedside to show we noticed and were thankful.)

When Envy Rears Its Ugly Head

“Who is able to stand before envy?”
Proverbs 27:4

“He knew that for envy they had delivered Him.” Matthew 27:18

We often use the words envy and jealousy interchangeably, but in Scripture there is a distinction made. Jealousy is felt for the protection of what is really ours. God is jealous over us (2 Cor. 11:2). Envy is wanting what God has given to someone else. It is a terribly invasive and sinful root and can destroy a family. The sons of Jacob “were moved with envy” when they sold their brother Joseph into slavery (Acts 7:9). Perhaps it was not wise for their father to have singled out Joseph for special favors and a designer coat. Mothers, let us not give our children any reason to feel that we love one above the other.

There may be times when envy rears its ugly head in our home, and we must treat it as a sin. Titus 3:3 classifies it this way. If one of your children in his inherent personality is blessed with a confident and contented nature, another equally intelligent and perhaps even more gifted or beautiful child may feel inferior and envious. This is self-absorption, and it is sinful and must be dealt with firmly and lovingly. We need to realize that envy flows from the old nature, and if your child has accepted the Lord Jesus as Saviour, then he has both a new nature and the Spirit within to help in dealing with this, even though it may be a long and difficult battle. Teach your child to look outward and upward!

Contentment

“I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”
Philippians 4:11

“Godliness with contentment is great gain.” 1 Timothy 6:6

In our last meditation we were talking about envy, and now we have something positive to think about, that beautiful word contentment. The word conjures up cozy fires, flower-filled meadows, and all things lovely. But Paul says “in whatsoever state.” Even when the furniture is shabby and the funds are low? Even when everyone else is off on a vacation and our budget won’t allow it? To learn this lesson is “great gain.” We mothers need to remember that we can never teach our children something that we have not learned and put into practice ourselves.

Fearing the Lord

“Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.”
Proverbs 31:30

It seems from this verse that the success of the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 is a result of her fear of the Lord. We need to take a look at what God Himself says about the fear of the Lord in His Word, so that we can gain an understanding of this key to becoming a woman worthy of praise.

Proverbs 9:10 (JND) tells us, “The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom; and the knowledge of the Holy is intelligence.” And Psalm 111:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments.” We certainly need wisdom and understanding to be godly wives and mothers, and we see that it is found in the fear of the Lord.

The dictionary says this kind of fear is “reverential awe.” Deuteronomy 5:29: “Oh that there were such a heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children forever!” Here we see that at least part of fearing the Lord is in keeping all His commandments. May we all search our own hearts as to what part of God’s Word we are not keeping and seek grace to start keeping it now.

Filling the Tank

“This is My commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you.”
John 15:12

Be aware that love is conveyed in different ways. Your husband has a love tank, and it’s your job to keep it filled. Gary Chapman, the author of The Five Love Languages, says there are five different ways to say, “I love you,” and put love in that tank. They are: words of affirmation, physical touch, quality time, acts of service, and gifts.

If you put gifts but not time in your husband’s love tank, and what he really wants is your undivided attention (quality time), pretty soon he is going to feel deprived. Likewise if you repeatedly tell him you love him and that he’s the most handsome man around (words of affirmation), but ignore his wants and needs when what he most wants is your acts of service, he will also feel neglected. What makes your husband feel loved may be different than what makes you feel loved.

Most of us are naturally adept at communicating in only one or two of these ways. God shows us love in all five ways, and He can help us learn another “language.” You can learn to show love in the way your husband most wants to receive it and be the companion he wants you to be. It is also good to communicate with your husband about what your love language is. Likely he would appreciate your being direct with him about it so that he will know how to fill up your empty tank as well!

Words of affirmation: “I will ... speak comfortably unto her.” “The Lord answered with good words and comfortable words” (Hosea 2:14; Eph. 1:13).

Physical touch: “And Jesus put forth His hand, and touched him.” “I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand” (Matt. 28:20; Isa. 59:1).

Quality time: “Lo, I am with you always.” “The Lord’s ... ear [is not] heavy, that it cannot hear” (Matt. 28:20; Isa. 59:1).

Acts of Service: “Even the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister.” “The lord ... shall ... make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them” (Mark 10:45; Luke 12:37).

Giving gifts: “God so loved ... that He gave His only ... Son.” “Shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (John 3:16; Rom. 8:32). “Then said Jesus ... Go, and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37).

Without Covetousness

“Be content.”
Hebrews 13:5

When we moved into our little house, we had two children with another one on the way. I never measured the house for size, but it had two rooms — a kitchen and a bedroom. In the bedroom the head, the foot, and one side of the double bed touched three walls. If you barricaded the remaining side, it made a nifty playpen. Underneath the bed we could store all our out-of-season clothing. The bedroom also held a chest of drawers, a full-size crib, and a smaller portable crib that squeezed in between the bed and the big crib. Its door was made of primary-colored bath towels, sewn together.

In the kitchen were cot-width bunks that could be curtained off in case we wanted to stay up after the two older children were in bed. The cook stove provided our heat. A dirt-floored attached shed held our firewood, and the unheated rear entryway with shelves doubled for a refrigerator during the long winter.

We never had leaky faucets or frozen pipes. Instead we had a bucket and dipper for drinking water, a galvanized tub and scrub board for laundry, and a large wooden barrel to catch rain for washing. I used to pray that it would rain every night (to fill the barrel) and be sunny every day so the children could play outdoors and the clothes would dry. Our gracious Lord frequently answered that prayer.

I must have had a bit of pioneer spirit in me because I loved that house. “Small house, small work” one of my neighbors had told me, and that is true! Often the kids and I all curled up together on the top of the wood box (it had a lid) and sang and read to our hearts’ content as cozy as bugs in a rug there beside the stove.

One day a brother in the Lord who was accustomed to a more affluent lifestyle visited us. “Oh,” he said, looking around, “you should make an addition. You could add this here, and that there. Your home would be so much better!” Suddenly all my contentment flew out the window. All my thoughts were about adding this and that. How foolish! The Lord had given us this delightful little house and these precious children (four by now). He had also given us His true and wise word, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee” (Heb. 13:5). It took about a month to get that covetousness out of my system, but when it was gone I was happy again. “Mortify [or put to death] ... covetousness, which is idolatry” (Col. 3:5).

Moral Power

“Bring them up in the discipline
and admonition of the Lord.”
Ephesians 6:4 (JND)

David showed a careless attitude towards immorality and in his sin against Uriah, and a few years later he found that two of his sons, Amnon and Absalom, showed the same careless disregard for these things. David must have recognized that he had set a bad example for them. He should have guided his sons’ feet into paths of righteousness in spite of his own failures or, perhaps more importantly, because of his failures. We must not lay aside discipline as parents just because we have fallen ourselves; we should judge it (as David had done when confronted by Nathan) and then admonish our children to avoid the same sin, and thus avoid its consequent sorrow.

If I have a casual attitude toward lying, then I cannot hope to instill into my children any greater aversion to that sin than I have myself. If I have a casual attitude toward covetousness, then I cannot be surprised if my children exhibit the same trait. If through God’s grace we judge lying, covetousness, and other sins before God, then we have moral power to reprove our children’s waywardness, perhaps preventing our sins from being carried out in the next generation. May the Lord give us the grace to judge in our own souls that which He brings before us, in order that we may be able to carry out what we have here, “bring them up in the discipline and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4 JND).

— Adapted

Bearing Fruit

“Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7-8

These verses provide a wonderful contrast to verses 5 and 6 of the same chapter. If we look to the Lord and trust in Him for every need, we’ll find in Him a never-failing source of refreshment. Then we’ll be like a tree planted by the waters, not like a juniper in the dessert, where all is dry and the tree stands alone.

This tree grows by the life-sustaining waters. Instead of not seeing the good (vs. 6), we will not see the heat. Our leaf will be green as we draw refreshment from the river of God’s fullness which can’t run dry. And “in the year of drought,” we won’t be full of care or anxiety. There will be no worries, even with no outward source of happiness (friends, happiness in marriage, good health, obedient children, plenty of money) because the roots of this life are by a never-failing stream.

“Neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” Have we become discouraged and stopped some work for our Lord? Or, more to the point, is the fruit of the Spirit hindered in our life, or nearly gone? It won’t be if we once again turn to the Lord in faith, stop looking to people or things on this earth to meet our needs, and look for all our needs to be met by Him alone. He is faithful. He will never fail the one who looks to Him. Look and live. “Looking unto Jesus” (Heb. 12:2). That word looking has the thought of looking away from other things and fixing the eye exclusively on something. Where, or to whom, are we going to look for our happiness today?

On Weariness

“Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Galatians 6:9

It doesn’t say “be not weary” and stop the sentence right there! We often are weary. Maybe there has been a long sleepless night caring for a sick child or a day overruled by a pounding headache. It is the “well-doing” part we are not to be weary of, and we read on to see that the reaping is “in due season.” Oh dear! Can we go on without the thanks and appreciation we thought would be coming our way? There are times when I have been disappointed that no one seemed to notice my valiant efforts. But then I am brought around in my thoughts to that ultimate sacrifice and Gift above all gifts. Have I looked up at any time today and whispered “thank you” for all He has given? He also was weary with His journey (John 4:6), and He understands.

The Unusual Meeting

“Be thou an example of the believers,
in word, in conversation, in charity,
in spirit, in faith, in purity.”
1 Timothy 4:12

They’ve lined up the chairs in the back bedroom where
It’s time for their “meeting,” their singing and prayer.
The little girls sit solemn with their dolls in a row,
Their coverings askew and stuffed diaper bags in tow.
Then in toddles Baby, who wants to play, too,
Only one and a half, yet she knows what to do.
She fetches a dish rag from the dolly dish pan,
And covers her head with it, the best that she can.
It may be lopsided, and she’s messed up her hair,
But with hymnbook in hand she scoots onto a chair.
This causes disturbance, for she’s picked the wrong one;
That was Raggedy Ann’s chair and she’s spoiled the fun.
Raggedy Ann’s “mother” is now very displeased,
That her “daughter’s” been shoved to the floor with such ease.

That’s Ann’s chair and not to be used for another,
She tries to take action; Baby shrieks for her mother.
A quarrel’s begun, Mother must interfere,
The meeting resumes when each has their own chair.
A hymn’s given out, and though the number was heard,
The songs that they sing seem composed of strange words.
Some songs are phrased from two hymns combined,
Though each sings a different one, they don’t seem to mind.
Their dolls, like our children, when it comes time for prayer,
Remain with eyes open, but a very blank stare.
Their children don’t wiggle as much as ours do,
They appear to be listening, and well-behaved, too.
When they’re alone, the girls read and they pray,
But if brother arrives, he wants things done his way.
The “moms” are to listen, the “dads” are to “read,”
He opens his Bible and he takes the lead.
When his sister decides that it’s time for a hymn,
He cannot compete, so he decides to give in.
A song is sung, a prayer is said, someone speaks a word,
A “He said unto them ... ,” a crying baby’s heard.
Mother smiles to herself, as she hears them at their play,
Imitating what they saw while in meeting yesterday.
How important our example when to meeting we have come,
For our examples may be copied by some present little one.

The Day the Lord Has Made

“This is the day which the Lord hath made;
we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalm 118:24

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage,
and He shall strengthen thine heart;
wait, I say, on the Lord.”
Psalm 27:14

“His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him.”
Lamentations 3:22-24

One morning Daddy went downstairs to tell his three-year-old son that it was time to get up. His small son sleepily replied, “But I got up yesterday!” We may smile at this remark, but don’t we sometimes feel this way, too? Some days we forget — or weary in remembering — that our purpose here is to live each day for the Lord and not (as the world tells us) for ourselves. We all have some days or circumstances we don’t want to face. We may be physically or emotionally worn out before we even get out of bed. If we remember that each day is the Lord’s, that He allows the circumstances, and that we face them with His strength, leaning on His promises, how different the day can be! How much happier we will be as well.

Heart To Heart: Godly Wisdom Woman To Woman

Table of Contents

Preface

The Sun’s Shining Ahead

Not Just a Housewife

What Are We Teaching Our Children?

The Birthday Cake

Where Do You Hatch Your Babies?

Jesus — Not the Gardener

Things to Aim at Prayerfully

Your Husband's Arrows

A Pleasant Atmosphere

Which Beauty?

Guilt

Between the Circumstance and Me

Look Above Your Husband to Him

Put the Fire Out

Tell Me the Story of Jesus!

What Am I Bringing?

Our Lives, a Garden

Don't Flaunt Your Beauty

Enough Sleep

The Lord Will Keep

Am I Content?

Father, Keep Our Children

What Has God Promised?

God's Measuring Stick

Love Is Kind

Glory in the Ordinary

Winning Your Husband

Whom Thou Hast Given Me

Enjoying the Seasons With Your Children

In Receiving Them We Receive Him

Am I Wise in My Own Eyes?

Still Your Prince Charming

Teaching a Right Attitude

Jehovah for Our Family

You Shall Have a Song

The Standard of God’s Word

Home

Am I Teaching Disobedience?

A Wonderful Heritage

The Fear of the Lord

Conflict of Conscience

Make Music for Him

Love and Respect

To My Grandson

Praying Wife, Praying Mother

Continue

Without Grudging

To Everything There Is a Season

Empty Nest

A Role for Older Women

Encourage the Young People

In the Safety of the Rock

Banding Together

Sing, O Barren!

Discretion: a Beautiful Jewel

Those Precious Early Years

The Loss of a Child

Stronger Than a Mother’s Love

Keepers at Home

Weeds

A Nurturing Mother

Helpful Advice for Wives and Mothers

Jumping the Hurdles

The Sandwich Generation

Casting Meal Into the Pot

Be a Builder-Upper

Claiming God’s Promises

Mary: Whose Faith Follow

Practical Tips for the Baby Days

The God of Second Chances

A Warning on How-to Books

Mary: a Godly Example

In Pressure Thou Hast Enlarged Me

Excuse This House

Awake at Night

Roses and Thorns

No Perfect Parents