A Heart to Obey

April 27, 2022April 25, 2022 RefreshHerLeave a comment

We continue our series of the review of A Woman After God’s Own Heart.

What is the one action that proves our love for God?

If you’ve ever wondered why God made commands for us to obey, or why He put the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the middle of the Garden, and then told Adam and Eve not to eat it, think about this truth –

God did not make us to be robots; He made us people with a heart to choose to love Him.

Ever since the first man and woman were created, God has been after our hearts. He wants us to love Him. John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

Our obedience is the proof of our love.

But it is a struggle, isn’t it? Paul said, For I do not do the good I want to do. Instead, I keep on doing the evil I do not want to do. Romans 7:19

Even David, the one called, A man after God’s own heart, struggled with doing the evil that he didn’t want to do, yet chose to do. It’s comforting to us who struggle to know that David was still a man after God’s own heart. We can be women who follow God, who love and obey God, even though we still disobey.

When David is living and serving God, there is another man who is on the throne – it’s King Saul. Saul Said he loved God, but his actions – his disobedience proved otherwise.

Let’s look again into E. George’s book….A Woman After God’s Own Heart to learn how we can obey.

How can we grow so that we are consistently obedient? I want us to remember that God is always after our heart. He doesn’t want our lip service, but he wants our heart.

Proverbs 4 reminds us to ponder the path of our feet and look straight ahead, not side to side. Rather than turning to the right or to the left, we are to follow God’s ways. Living a life of obedience will happen when we diligently guard our heart.

Concentrate on doing what is right. If we really love God, we are going to look into his Word and we are going to pray and be ready to do everything he says to do. This is a teachable heart that will focus on doing what is right.
What about those times when you’re not sure what the right thing is? Elizabeth says first of all don’t do anything until you know what is right. Next ask God for guidance. Pray about it. Think through the Scriptures and ask advice from a godly, seasoned Christian. If you’re still unsure, do nothing until you know what the right thing is.
Cease doing what is wrong. The moment that you realize that you have done something to disobey the Lord, stop it immediately! When you are in the middle of an activity that you know is wrong, God will give you strength to get out of the temptation. Saul was not supposed to offer the sacrifice, but was told to said for Samuel to come and do that. He got impatient. If at any moment while he was preparing the sacrifice, he would have realized he was sinning, and stopped, he could have saved himself a lot of heartache.
Confess any wrong. Keep short accounts of your sin. Name the sin. Elizabeth says that we need to train our heart to be responsive to God’s convicting Spirit. Proverbs 28:13 He who covers his sin will not Prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes will have mercy.
I remember recently being convicted over an unloving statement that I said to someone about another person. I could not get any rest until I made it right with the Lord. Immediately, I had peace, knowing that He had forgiven me.
Clear things with others after you’ve made it right with God, if you’ve hurt another person clear it up with them too. As I just said a moment ago, I confessed to God my sin of saying something unloving, then had to reach out to the person that I had said it to and make it right with them. That also helps when you’re tempted to sin the next time!!
Continue on as soon as possible – . Satan would love for us to feel so discouraged in our disobedience that we quit following God. He wants us to say, “Why even bother?” But we know that we are forgiven and our sins are removed from us as far as the East is from the West. Think the truth. Philippians 3:13 and 14 remind us that we are to forget those things which are behind and reach forward under the things that are before us and press toward the goal for the prize of the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Do we have a desire to have a heart that follows after God and obedience? Psalm 63:8 says, My soul follows hard after thee; Thy right hand upholds me. We need to acknowledge any disobedience in our life, confess the sin, and choose to forsake it. Then we can realize that we are on the path of being a woman after God’s heart.

All along, let us remember we are not asked to understand, but simply to obey. ~Amy Carmichael

We are not robots, we are people – women who must choose obedience. It proves our love for our Savior.

Other lessons from this book are here, here and here.

Don’t forget to enter the give away. Details here.

Budget friendly meal · dinner in 30 minutes · Fish · Healthy Eating · main dish · Uncategorized

Dijon Crusted Fish

April 25, 2022April 23, 2022 RefreshHer8 Comments

Most times if I ask guests that are coming to my home for a meal if they have any foods they don’t enjoy eating, they will often say fish. I get that because some recipes for fish are just stinky and bland.

But the recipe I’m sharing today is so good that it would make a great restaurant menu item. The ingredients are simple, but add incredible flavor and texture to the fish. It is above ordinary for something that’s fixed at home. Like most fish recipes, this is super fast to pull together because it doesn’t require long in the oven, making this a great weeknight menu.

I served this with oven-roasted potatoes and a seven layer salad. It was a delicious meal! If you are a nominal fish fan, I hope you will try this great recipe from taste of home.

Dijon Crusted Fish

Ingredients

3 tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish – (I didn’t add this)
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
4 tilapia fillets (5 ounces each)
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
2 teaspoons butter, melted

Directions

Preheat oven to 425°. Mix the first 4 ingredients and 1 tablespoon cheese. Place tilapia on a baling sheet coated with cooking spray; spread evenly with mayonnaise mixture.
Toss bread crumbs with melted butter and remaining cheese; sprinkle over fillets. Bake until fish just begins to flake easily with a fork, 12-15 minutes.

Easy, fast and delicious!! I should also add, “healthy!” Its only 214 calories per filet! You might just being having fish mire often after trying this recipe!

Refreshment · wardrobe

A Shopping Give-Away!

April 22, 2022April 22, 2022 RefreshHerLeave a comment

Two weekends ago I had the blessing of speaking at The Wilds ladies’ retreat. Though the weather was CRAZY – (we had sun, wind, clouds, rain and then snow!) our time was like a spring day in my heart. To have the blessing of teaching God’s Word is always a joy! How our hearts need those times away to soak in Scripture, spend time alone with the Lord, and also enjoy encouragement from godly friends.

While teaching on my theme for this year in Colossians 3, I used the analogy of a friend of mine, Tricia Mosier, who owns a consignment shop in our area, Elizabeth Dean Boutique, . She has at her fingertips all kinds of clothing items that belong to her because she is the shop owner. All she has to do is appropriate what is hers to enjoy putting on clothing for each day. Spiritually, if we have trusted Christ, we have the same blessing in a much deeper sense. We can “wear” kindness, forgiveness and peace because it was purchased for us when we were saved. It’s such a beautiful life to live and it’s all because we have Christ living in us. Amazing!

Back to the boutique…It Is Beautiful. The store itself is lovely; the racks are color-coordinated and displayed according to size and type of clothing. There is even a $3 clearance store at the bottom of the parking lot where I’ve found lots of items. I have purchased items from her with prices that varied from $1 (on her occasional Dollar Days!), $3, $5 or a little above $10. She also carries purses, shoes, coats, accessories…well you get the picture!

Each day I spoke at The Wilds, I was sporting clothes from Elizabeth Dean. No one knew, but it was fun to know that I was appropriating what I had found in her boutique! Here’s one example – White House Black Market pants I purchased for $5! Every week she has one color of tag that is half off. These pants happened to be the right color tag!

I like buying high quality clothes at greatly reduced prices. That’s a big part of why I shop at this consignment store, located in Gray, Tennessee. I also love that Tricia is a believer, and desires to honor the Lord with her business. It’s also great to support local businesses! So many reasons to enjoy this boutique!

After the retreat was over, ladies from this area came home and told Tricia that I had used her store as an illustration while speaking, and she graciously reached out to me to say she would be happy to sponsor a give-away! So, because of her kindness, four ladies will win a $25 gift certificate to Elizabeth Dean Boutique! How fun is that?!

These pants and top were purchased at Elizabeth Dean for a total of $22.

Here’s how you can enter to win – Please read carefully.
There will be 4 winners, each winning one $25 gift certificate. This giveaway will be open until midnight on Thursday, April 28 and is only open in the United States. Elizabeth Dean Boutique is a brick and mortar store in Gray, Tennessee. You must be following both RefreshHerblog and Elizabeth Dean Boutique on Instagram to qualify for this giveaway. I will contact the winner via email. Please respond within 24 hours after receiving the email to claim your prize. If you do not respond, I will choose another winner. Thank you for entering this giveaway!

Click here to enter.

Even if you don’t win, I hope you’ll stop in to Tricia’s consignment store at 5025 Bobby Hicks Hwy #107, Gray, TN 37615 and tell her Denise sent you!

Refresh your wardrobe with some good deals, but even better, refresh your spiritual wardrobe by appropriating all that Christ has purchased for you!

Biblical Womanhood · fellowship with God · God's Will · Prayer

A Heart for Prayer

April 20, 2022November 4, 2022 RefreshHer6 Comments

This is a continuation of the review of the book, A Woman After God’s Own Heart, but Elizabeth George

Whenever spring arrives, you will find me taking bags full of items that are being sent out to donate. They are things that are no longer of use to me. They are weighing me down. The truth is, however, that those bags typically sit in my garage for a long time before they finally get hauled away. I know they need to go. I know it will feel good to get rid of them. I know it’s the best thing, but I keep putting it off, until finally I’ve had enough and the task finally gets done! It feels so good to unclutter my home! I always wonder why I didn’t do it sooner!

While that is so freeing to me, the act of taking my load of sin, burdens and requests to the Lord is even better! We often carry that load around with us and the burden of it all is weighty and deadening to our spiritual growth.

Most Christians delay praying. We put it off and resist it! We make excuses as to why we don’t pray. Satan doesn’t want us to have that fellowship with the Lord, and we listen to his lies until we finally are at a breaking point and we pour out our heart to God. The result is better than we could ever imagine.

In her book, A Woman After God’s Own Heart, Elizabeth George shares seven blessings of having a fervent prayer life. When I read these, I wondered why we put it off, why we don’t pray more. Look at to these incredible blessings ~

A deeper relationship with God. How can we have a relationship with the God who saved us if we don’t communicate with Him? Just as you and I long for fellowship with our husband or friends, God longs to enjoy fellowship and communion with Him. That happens when we pray. It’s not out of obligation, but because of a relationship. I Peter 5:7
As a camel kneels before his master to have him remove his burden, so kneel and let the Master take your burden.
Greater purity. As we talk with God, the Spirit of God will reveal sin in our lives. That leads us to confessing that sin and getting it right with Him. Elizabeth shared about being convicted of gossip. She began to make it a real matter of prayer that God would help her defeat this sin. “I faced my sin regularly in prayer. Sin led to confession, which led to purging.”
Confidence in Making decisions. – As we face decisions that need to be made, giving them to the Lord and making it a true matter of prayer will give us wisdom about what to do. God will never lead us to do something that is contrary to His word. So as we pray about the decision, He will direct us in His truth. We need to pray about everything. Elizabeth lives by this mantra ~
No decision without prayer.
NO DECISION? None. “Should I go here?”
“Should I say yes to this invitation?”
As we are directed by the Lord in prayer, we can have confidence regarding those choices. When God has led us to say Yes to giving the devotion at a baby shower, we won’t dread it or be afraid, because we remember that He led us to make that decision, and He will fulfill all the good pleasure of His will!
Improved Relationships. Making specific prayer for those people closest to us will strengthen our relationships with them. How does this happen?
1. You can’t think about yourself and others at the same time.
2. You can’t hate the person you are praying for. Jesus instructed us to pray for our enemies. Matt 5:44 and God changes our hearts as we do so.
3. You cannot neglect the person you are praying for. As we pray, we find ourselves involved in those people’s lives.
Contentment. As we give to the Lord our wants, realizing that He will keep His promises to provide our needs, we will learn that “If He didn’t meet it, we didn’t need it. Paul said he was initiated into the secret place of contentment. This secret place is the place of prayer. If you’re praying about something and want it so badly, take it to your time of prayer.
God-confidence. As you face your own inadequacies, prayer will give you confidence in what He can do through you. You will learn to trust Him.
The ministry of prayer. No matter if you have physical strength to go and do other ministries, you can always have a ministry of prayer. You don’t need to go anywhere, you don’t need anything except a heart to bring burdens to our God Who promises to hear us when we call out to Him. So pray for others! Pray about your own burdens! You be the one who reaches out to pray with a friend over the phone, or in your home. Be the intercessor for others because of your heart to pray.

Are you a praying woman? Or are you carrying around the load and weight of your burdens rather than taking them to the Lord? You’ll be so free if you’ll spend time sharing your heart with God. You’ll also wonder why you didn’t do this sooner. God wants fellowship with you. Call out to Him. Draw near. He will draw near to you.

Do you have a prayer journal? I have offered a pdf for my favorite prayer journal in past. I’m still happy to send it for free to anyone who emails me here at Refreshherblog@gmail.com.

You can find the previous chapter of the review of A woman After God’s Own Heart here.

Make-Ahead · Side dish

Easter Dinner Recap

April 18, 2022April 18, 2022 RefreshHer4 Comments

Wow! What a special Easter week this was! Good Friday’s service was such a blessing as we were reminded of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross in our place. Then Sunday we rejoiced and worshiped and sang and had sweet fellowship with our church family as well as our physical family.

After our morning service we gathered in our home with our girls and their families, and also some dear friends. My daughters and I collaborated on the meal, and it was so much fun to work together and put out a spread we all enjoyed. Here’s the menu:

Glazed Ham
Gourmet Potatoes
Corn Saute’
Green Salad with peaches and Craisins
Deviled Eggs
Cheddar Biscuits
Coconut Cake ~ Chocolate Fudge Pie

My contribution was the cake, ham and potatoes. These Gourmet potatoes have a long history in our family. They are perfect for a busy meal because they are all made up ahead of time and then just slid into the oven to bake for 30 minutes.

Gourmet Potatoes
6 medium potatoes
2 C shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C butter
1 1/2 C sour cream (I used light)
1/3 C chopped onion
1 t. salt
paprika

Peel the potatoes. Leave them whole. Cook in boiling water ’til tender. Cool.
Shred potatoes coarsely. In medium-sized saucepan, melt butter and cheese. Stir ’til melted. Remove from heat; blend in sour cream, onions and salt. Fold in potatoes and pour into a 2 qt. casserole dish.
Sprinkle with paprika on top. Refrigerate overnight. Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

The meal was all so good, and it was such a blessing having help with the meal. What fun it was to work together in the kitchen with my girls.

Teach your daughters to cook! It is so rewarding! Do you enjoy having help while you’re cooking? Have you taught your daughters to cook, too? I’d love ot hear!

My pictures on my site here are still an issue, so please go to my Instagram ~ Refreshherblog and you’ll find pictures of our Easter dinner and celebration. If you’re not following me on Instagram, what are you waiting for? It’s where I post most often! You can click to Instagram by scrolling all the way down to the bottom of the page if you are reading on your phone. Look for the camera icon for Instagram.