Family life · Refreshment · womanhood

The Blessing of a Sister Retreat

Sisters, sisters
There were never such devoted sisters…

I had the joy of going on a four-day Sister Retreat  last week!  This is the third time my two sisters and I have had the chance to get away together.  We started these “retreats” eleven years ago and have had three totally different kinds of events each time.

The first retreat was  a trip to New York City!  We made a long weekend of it and did all the highlights of the city!  The next time we retreated, we went to a special place – Fairhaven Ministries, near my home and stayed in a little chalet.  We walked the trails, we cooked, we prayed.

This year’s retreat was also fairly near my home.  My sisters traveled from Kentucky to Tennessee and we drove less than an hour to go to a lovely cottage on a lake.  The setting Continue reading “The Blessing of a Sister Retreat”

Responding to trials · womanhood · Work

Dealing With the Mundane Or Critical Times With Purpose

What mundane things does this day find you doing?  Going to work?  Washing dishes?  Caring for a baby or toddler?  Cleaning up a mess?  Perhaps yesterday was the very same and tomorrow will follow suit.  As you trod through your days, what guides your steps?  What makes you do the next thing and the next?

There are also those days when the situations makes your heart race and your steps quicken.  We gasp at the thought of those days that are marked by trial and difficulty.  How will you respond?  What will keep you from coming apart?

Proverbs 4:11-12 gives good encouragement about how we can do more than just survive both kinds of days.  Watch the video below to hear the wisdom we get from God’s Word.

Where does today find you – walking the monotonous, plodding steps? Or are you running in a trial?  I pray you now have the wisdom to know how to make the most of each kind of day so that you know what to do next and how to keep from stumbling.

God has a purpose for today.  Make it count for His glory.

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Biblical Womanhood · Wife's Role · womanhood · Women's roles

“Just a Housewife”

summer birdhouse 1

This past week I had two conversations that stuck in my mind and heart.  One was when  dear lady told me that after holding many responsibilities with titles, she was now “Just a housewife.” The other woman told me she was a part-time housewife and wished it was full-time.

Every woman probably has her own definition of what a housewife does and how she Continue reading ““Just a Housewife””

Biblical Womanhood · femininity · womanhood

Be More Than Just Modest

One morning I listened to Revive our Hearts broadcast on the subject matter of modesty. As I picked up my grocery list and purse and headed out the door to the store later that day, the thoughts from the program were still on my mind.

Not long after I entered the store I looked up an aisle and saw an employee, but I wasn’t sure – “was it a woman?” My thoughts bantered: “No, it’s a man. No. It’s a woman. Yes. That’s right – I think.”

About 15 minutes later I was in another part of the store when I came upon a customer pushing a young child in the cart. “Is that the mother or the father?” I truly could not tell until I passed them in the aisle and could see her skin, and then heard the child say “mommy.”

As I walked away from these women, I thought about the things I’d heard addressed from the broadcast. Modesty issues need to be addressed in our society today – it’s sorely lacking, even among Christian women. However, I began to think about the need to also be sure that along with dressing modestly, that we are also characterizing femininity.

What thoughts come to your mind when you read that? Lace? High heels? Dresses? Ruffles? Of course those things are indeed all feminine, but I believe we can have on a pair of jeans and a blouse and still be feminine. Wearing jewelry that is distinctively for a woman, having hair that is soft and cut in a woman’s style, and wearing clothes and shoes that are unquestionably feminine are all ways we can be sure we are dressing in a way that would set us apart as a woman.

We can also display femininity in our actions, speech, and walk. I’ll never forget a habit I picked up when I was a 5Th grader. I had a male teacher who, as he walked, would bounce off the balls of his feet. One day I was at home and my mom said, “Denise, you’re walking like Mr. Heft! Don’t do that!” I’m sure it must have been hilarious, but it was also not ladylike! The fact that we are women should be evident in all aspects of our lives. I’m not suggesting that we go overboard and walk with a swing in our hips that would rate a 5.0 on the Richterscale, but there is a difference between walking like a man or walking like a woman!

“What’s the big deal?” you might ask. In Genesis 2 we read that in the Garden of Eden, God made man, then He made woman. They were distinctly different, made with different purposes and they were even made with different substances; Adam was formed from the dust of the ground and Eve was made from the rib of Adam. I believe it honors the Lord, our Creator, to celebrate our femininity by being feminine, dressing femininely, and acting feminine. That’s how He made us and it is good.

My challenge is for us to look carefully at ourselves and be sure that we’re characteristic of a godly, feminine woman.

Books · Discipleship · Encouragement · Family life · Marriage · mentoring ministry · Parenting · Refreshment in marriage · Wife's Role · womanhood

Books On My Tables

A wonderful book is a treasure.  I love to read, and I’m always on the search for a new author or title to check out. While there have been years when I was busy with homeschool that I didn’t get to read as much as I wanted, I pretty much always have a “book going.”

It only seems fair to share my treasures with you! So today I’m sharing three books that are sitting on my coffee tables that I’m currently reading and LOVING! They’re different enough that I can read all three at the same time.

Book 1a

Adorned – This is one of those books that every woman needs to read – and then reread at least every other year.  Titus 2 is the backdrop for all the teaching and instruction found here.  It’s practical, convicting, helpful and challenging.  She addresses both the older and younger women and ends each chapter with a list of questions for each.  My copy is covered in yellow highlights to help me remember these essential truths for my life as a woman who loves and desires to live for God.

For my girls’ birthdays this year, I gave them each two copies – one for themselves, and one to give to an older woman they could ask to go through it with them.  This book is best when shared with at least one friend.  Do your spiritual life and your female side a favor and read this!

book 3a

The Most Important Place on Earth – This book about the home was written by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth’s husband years before they were ever married.  His first wife died of cancer, and he and Nancy married nearly two years ago.  Robert is an excellent, compelling writer.  I have laughed out loud as he shared many tales from his own home life.  He wisely shares the ingredients needed to make our homes the most important place on the earth.

I got my copy from Amazon for less than a dollar.  There are updated versions that have a cover that’s current to today, but the message is one that will be relevant for all time.  I highly recommend this book, and am thankful that my sis recommended it to me! Thanks, Dianne!

Book 2a

The Cave, The Cabin and The Tattoo Man – This book also came from my sister, who has met the author, Tim Callahan, from Kentucky.  To read the title you might be surprised that I’m reading it, but the story is precious.  It’s a fiction book based on the author’s growing up years, which happen to be the same era in which I grew up.  Hence, the illustrations and pictures he paints take me back to my own childhood days.

This is the story of a little boy who stays with his grandparents during the summer months.  He helps them with the little grocery store they owned.  He fishes in their pond so well that he is the envy of all the grown men, and he gets himself into precarious situations during his free hours.

When I need a book to just take me away on a little vacation, this is the one I’m reading…for the second time.  This is a series, too, which is fun.  I love knowing there is one to follow!

I hope you’ll check into reading at least one of these suggestions.  They’re all worthy of your time, and in my opinion, much better value than anything television has to offer!  Autumn is nearly upon us, and aren’t fall and winter the best times to snuggle in somewhere comfy with a cup of coffee and read a compelling book?!

Do you have a treasured book you’re reading?  Please share in the comments!  I’ll need some new titles soon!

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