Monday, May 16, 2011

From the hearts of other sisters

“Your godly lives will speak to them better than any words. They will be won over by watching your pure, godly behavior.” 1 Peter 3:1-2

Brethren I am blessed to have so many of you walk this journey with me. I am so thankful to these Sisters in Christ who took the time to respond to the Devotion “Come on Sisters, help this sister out”
I was blown away by the responses I received and very encouraged by so many of you. Thank you for sharing your heart and for allowing me to share your heart on Godly Gossip. If one woman comes to know the Lord or finds the encouragement she needs to press more into Jesus…well that is what Godly Gossip is all about. Spreading Gods’ word!

My sweet sisters I love and adore you. Thank you!

Names have been left off for privacy!

"Looking through our husbands to Christ and serving Him" - that is such a wonderful reminder for me.  Honestly, through the years - that is what it has come down to.  If it had not been Christ as our foundation - the house would have washed away many years ago.  However, it was not about us - it was about Him.  No matter how bad things get - it is always about Him.  He is the reason to fight for our marriages - if not Him why else?  Yes, marriage is full of sacrifices and in our selfishness - we don't like to have to give up our rights and control but Christ requires that of us. John 13:4-17”He got up from the meal....poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples feet.....When He had finished washing their feet he said "Do you understand what I have done?...Now that I, Your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash another's feet....now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."   Well, there have been times along the way that I did not want to wash my husband's feet so to speak but Christ commands that I serve and honor Him by serving and honoring and respecting my husband.  It is a humbling experience to do that even when it is hard but the blessings of doing what Christ commands are so rewarding.  Do I still fail sometimes - you bet I do.  In all honesty, I want to throw the water at him instead of washing his feet but I am always reminded of Jesus great sacrifice for us and am brought back to my knees with a grateful heart.  Sometimes it has taken longer than other times but thankfully God has never given up on me and continues to draw me as His child to do what I know is right.  "Create in me a clean heart, Oh God, and renew a right spirit within me" has been my cry many times and He never fails to answer.  
Thanks for reminding us all to "look through our husbands to Christ and serve Him."  That makes our husbands look very sweet when they are not looking so sweet to us.  Yes, that still happens from time to time even after 35 years but Christ is worth it all.

I probably shouldn't respond while I'm put out with my husband :)  Because when I'm put out, even though I know what I'm supposed to do/feel, it is extremely difficult and I'm just doing it out of obligation rather than love and then I start feeling like I have no life of my own, that he's just trying to turn me into a carbon copy of him and then you know what happens after that!  Straight downhill!  It will all be ok though.

I was writing in response...
I have now been staying home for three years which has been a HUGE blessing that I never expected.  It has led to some financial issues, but out of it we received K after three years of failed fertility and it allowed me to get to know my oldest K in a different way.
Staying home truly opened the door for me to see and experience the biblical plan for my relationship with my kids and my husband.  The change in rolls was hard at first and I won't lie...S and I have had some major life issues the last two years but by the Grace of God we are still standing together and not falling apart.
I realized that I actually put my love and hope in Christ on S and after counseling realized how unfair that is.  Although it was a huge compliment to the extent of my love for S and what I saw in him it wasn't healthy.
Now I strive to serve the Lord by serving my family without confusing the two.
All of life is overwhelming and much can be lost in translation but it is my prayer daily to go to bed RIGHT with the Lord.  If the answer to that is yes...everything else will fall into place.

Our Husbands are a gift from God himself and should be treated with love and respect
 I'm not telling you nothing that we all don't already know, but sometime we forget, and need to be reminded that they have feeling just as we do. They sometimes just have a hard time showing us what’s inside. They feel that their problems are theirs to deal with and that yours are for them to fix.  God has called us to be their helpers NOT their boss and sometimes we girls seem to treat our sweet MEN as one of our children. Don’t get me wrong, they like to be taken care of, but there is a fine line that we as wives and moms cross at times, that we really don't mean to cross but do. We all love our husbands very much, and from time to time we as their helper and friend need to ask God to make us better wives than we can make ourselves. to ask for His guidance, His will for us as wives .God did make Eve from Adams rib and made Eve his help mate, And God still intends for our husbands to be the head of our family and God the head of our home, And last the advice that we all were given on our wedding day, never go to bed angry. And always remember that first kiss and you will fall in love all over again. Those kisses may not be as passionate like they once were, but the love is greater now, than it was then.