Discipleship · Mentoring

A Favorite Tool for Building Girls

RefreshHer5 Comments

The right tool can help accomplish a task with skill and precision! The right knife to cut bread easily, a food processor that can grate a block of cheese in seconds, and good pans that allow you to cook without the food scorching or sticking are all SO helpful.

While the right tools are essential in the kitchen, they are also needed to disciple women and girls! Let me explain ~

I have a precious 12-year old neighbor girl who trusted Christ after Bible Club at my house a few years back. Because she doesn’t attend church, I’ve been so burdened to help her grow in Christ. As she will soon be entering her teen years, I wanted to help her to learn to make right choices, based on God’s Word. How would I do that?

Then I learned about a book, by Dana Gresh written especially for girls! The book is called, Lies Girls Believe. As I looked through its pages, I knew that this book could serve as just the right tool to help me teach her about God’s Word.

Image result for lies girls believe and the truth that sets them free

We are all faced with the lies of this world. Young girls are especially vulnerable. They hear things like,

  • God is not enough!
  • I have to be pretty or popular to be valuable.
  • There are things I could do that would make God stop loving me.
  • My parents just don’t get me.
  • Being a mom or homemaker isn’t important.
  • I don’t need to talk to my mom about stuff going on in my life.

These are just some of the lies that are addressed in the book. I was impressed with how relevant the topics were to my young friend’s life. The illustrations shared in the book were from real girls in real situations in which girls can truly relate.

Image result for lies girls believe and the truth that sets them free

I’m sharing this in case you have a daughter between 10-12, or you know a girl that age – a niece, a granddaughter, a girl at church, or in your neighborhood. Who will share TRUTH with her if you don’t?

Are you frightened you won’t know what to do? Well, just like we learn how to use those kitchen tools, you can learn to disciple a young girl! To be honest, I was a little afraid, too! I was afraid she wouldn’t open up, or that I wouldn’t know what to say, but as in anything we do for the Lord, He gives strength and wisdom to accomplish the task!

Let me share with you how I structured my time as we went through the book:

  • I kept communication open with her mom. Some of the topics were sensitive and I always wanted to give her mom a heads-up (like when we were going to discuss her menstrual cycle).
  • I made it casual. In the summertime, we sat out on the back porch. In the winter, we were in the living room on the sofa, in our sock feet with the fire burning.
  • I offered a beverage and sometimes a snack or dessert (depending on the time of day we were able to meet.) Girls love chocolate for the most part, so I often just had snack-sized candy bars or small cookies out so she could indulge, if she wanted to.
  • I stayed flexible. Between school and sporting events, she’s busy, so I tried to open up my week to work whenever she was available.
  • I had her read the illustrations about Zoe, the “main character,” who helped us learn each week’s lesson. We would go back and forth reading the chapter out loud. I would have things underlined or marked in my book ahead of time, so I’d remember parts where I wanted to stop and ask her questions.
Image result for lies girls believe and the truth that sets them free
  • I tried to be very transparent. In the chapter where we discussed the lie It’s okay to be boy-crazy! I honestly shared with her that I had believed that as a teen. I told her my regrets in doing so. I also shared with her how I sought God’s will after high school and how God directed my life. I shared my salvation testimony, and many other examples from my own life.
  • Sometimes we would do an activity together to illustrate the lesson. One week when talking about watching shows with just a little bit of cursing or sinful lifestyles, we made No-Bake Cookies together. I had a container of bleach on the counter and suggested that we pour in just a tablespoon of the bleach into the ingredients “just to see what would happen.” Of course I had no intention of doing so, but when we discussed our lesson while enjoying our cookies, I reminded her that “just a little bit of cursing” in a movie was as dangerous for us as the bleach would have been. I think she got the point!
    On the week we discussed friends, we crafted a card for her to give to her friend.
  • I ended the book by doing something special together. On the night of the final chapter, I took her to dinner and gave her several restaurant options. Each restaurant was a place where there was an extensive menu. After she’d chosen the place and then ordered her dinner, I told her that just like she had to make a choice for our restaurant and for her dinner, she would have to choose Truth for the rest of her life. We reiterated again how she would do that.

As of this week, we’re finished with the study, but she will continue to be in my regular prayers. I will text her occasionally to ask her how she’s doing with digging into God’s Word for Truth. And oh, will I miss seeing her so frequently! (We’ve discussed doing another study perhaps this summer.) But I’m also seeking another girl with whom I could do this study.

Who might you invest in by using this simple, but powerful tool? This is a wonderful use of your time and your testimony. Unlike my food processor or knives, this is a tool that will give eternal results!

What questions or fears do you have about discipling a young girl?

Refresh the life of a pre-teen and pour your life into hers!

Coronavirus · God's character · God's Love · trust

Trusting My Father

RefreshHer2 Comments

This life has lots of hard questions –

Why is Covid still lingering?
Why hasn’t God taken it away?
Is He powerful enough to do so?

Last week I shared one answer to those questions. Today I want to give one more…

We won’t always understand God’s reasons for what He’s doing. Sometimes God is silent.  I think of Job’s trial when God asked him in Job 38 ~

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? declare if thou knowest it all.19 Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness, where is the place thereof,

At those times (and there are lots of them in Scripture and in our lives), we simply trust God. How can we trust Him?  We come to know Him.

My dad didn’t owe me an explanation; he was father!  He did what was best for me.  Sometimes he did indeed surprise me by stopping into that custard stand, but there were more times when he drove right on by.

On a much higher plane, when we come to know Who God is in the pages of His Word, we will learn that whether He does what we want, or if He does something we don’t understand, we can trust Him! We wouldn’t complain or shake our finger in God’s face if we could understand that He was protecting us from danger, or preparing us for something even more difficult in the future.  

The Egyptians who chased after the Israelites didn’t have the blessing of the pillar of fire or the cloud to guide them; it was darkness to them.  God will reveal Himself to those that seek Him, but scoffers and accusers stumble in their darkness.

Today when I think of someone when I have ice cream you know who it is? It’s my dad! What a giver of good gifts. But God is even greater! Can God stop the virus? Of course.  Why hasn’t He yet?  I don’t know, but HE does, and I trust His character to do what is best for me.

Friend, you may be wondering why God is allowing some other kind of trial to go on in your life, you may have a question about His ways, but the answers shared above all apply. Open your Bible. See His character and trust Him as your Father who loves you more than you can ever imagine.

Refresh your trust in a loving, providential and righteous God.

Denise

Homemade Meals for Busy People
Fast meal · Help for busy moms · Meal planning

Homemade Meals for Busy People

RefreshHer1 Comment

You’re busy.  I understand!  Life gets crazy, doesn’t it?  But I firmly believe that supper at home is possible, even in the midst of busy lives.  All it takes is a little creativity and some good planning.

The recipes I’m sharing are all on my blog, but sometimes when you go looking at a list of recipes it’s hard to know which ones you could make in a hurry, so I thought I’d make a list this week of some of my favorite meals that are quick.

Let’s start with Breakfast.

  • The homemade Pop Tarts  (pictured above) can be made with purchased pie dough if you opt out of the homemade dough.
  • Baked Oatmeal can be made the night before and baked off in the morning!
  • Make a stack of pancakes or waffles on the weekend and freeze them.
  • Pre-cook a pound of bacon until it’s half way cooked.  Put it into a freezer bag and put it in the fridge.  When you need it for breakfast it will take half the time necessary.  You could cook it all the way done, too!
  • Double a batch of muffins and freeze them .  That way everyone doesn’t get tired of blueberry muffins because you’ve had them for three days in a row. 
  • Breakfast burritos can be made ahead of time. These are so good! Scramble eggs.  Add cooked sausage, bacon or ham.  Spread on tortillas.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Wrap tortilla in Saran wrap. Place in fridge.  When needed, heat at 30 second intervals until warm.  Add salsa, if desired.

Lunch:At home:

  • Pizza crust in the freezer is a huge help.  Take it out at breakfast so it’ll be ready to bake off.
  • English muffins can serve as pizza crusts, too.  spread with pizza sauce, cheese and other toppings.  Broil.
  • Grill extra chicken at supper and use the extra for wraps or chicken salad.
  • Chicken or veggie Quesadillas

At school or Work:

  • Corn Dog Muffins 
  • Tortilla filled with veggies and cheese.
  • Homemade Lunchables.  Making lunch for children that is appealing is all about doing it creatively and in small portions.  Get a divided lunch container or use cupcake liners.  Put crackers in one, pepperonis or salami slices in another.  Add grapes, blueberries, strawberries or orange segments.  Other “little” items you could add – Grape tomatoes, baby carrots, celery and peanut butter, 
  • Freeze crustless sandwiches.  Peanut butter and jelly work great.  Just put peanut butter on both pieces of bread; it’ll keep the jelly from making the bread soggy.

Supper:

I hope this list helps you the next time you’re in a rush for a meal!     With love from my country kitchen.

Gifts · Valentine Treats · Valentine's Day

Last Minute Valentine’s Day Ideas

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This is a repost of an old post written to especially help men get an idea of what to do for Valentine’s Day.  My husband is the BEST at gift-giving, and you’ll find 10 ideas down in this post!  

This is the week of Valentine’s – I guess we’re all aware of that. If you have a Valentine, I trust he also realizes that! No slam is suggested in that statement, it’s just that not all men think about these things before the day arrives. So, I thought it might be appropriate to start out today by giving a word to the wise for Valentine’s. If you you or your Valentine could use some suggestions of things to do or gifts to give, read on!

Love is kind. I Corinthians 13:4

Sweet treats are always a good thing for Valentine’s Day! Last weekend I made a recipe of brownies then after they were completely cooled, I cut them in large squares. Using a small heart shaped cookie cutter a cut a heart out of the middle of the brownie as you see in the picture here. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, but then I made up a butter cream icing, tinted it pink and filled in the heart with the icing. You could use canned icing too in your favorite flavor. I then wrapped each brownie in waxed paper and put them in cute little boxes and shipped them off to my two girls who both love chocolate! The cut out hearts make nice little bite-sized treats too!
 
Love seeketh not her own. I Cor. 13:5

Some of the other little gifts I put in the pillow pocket have been:

Two gel pens with the note – You are my “write” man!
A recent picture of us made into a Valentine Card.

“How much do I love you?”
(attached to note)

An OLD picture of us when we first started dating!

Another thought would be to go to Pandora (or Amazon music) and make a play list of music you loved while you were dating, and have it playing when you eat supper or when he gets home.

I’ve asked my husband to share some good ideas for dates and/or gifts for Valentine’s Day. He’s very thoughtful and creative and gets an A+ in this department! Here are his Gift suggestions for men to give their wives:

Ways to say “I love you”
1. Use a dry erase marker and leave a love note scribbled on the bathroom mirror or leave love notes in her purse, dresser drawer, on the fridge door, in her car or by the coffeepot.
2. Write in your own words 10 reasons why you love her and leave it attached to a dozen roses, a box of candy or a piece of jewelry.
3. Wash and vacuum her car; leave a love note on the steering wheel.
4. After the children go to bed, order a personal pan pizza and have a pizza date in the bedroom with candlelight and romantic music.
5. Invite your Sweetheart to Starbucks for a peppermint mocha. While there, play a board game or two and pay no attention to anyone else but your spouse.
6. Make her some chocolate covered strawberries. Pick up some strawberries at the grocery store and in the baking department, find chocolate that is microwaveable. Dip the strawberries in the chocolate, chill and serve on nice plate.
7. Schedule a manicure or a pedicure at a local spa. She needs the time away and the pampering will do her good. Pay for the treatment over the phone so all she’s responsible for is to show up.
8. Instead of going out to eat, order carry-out. Serve it up on your best tableware, have candlelight, and soft music. Be creative and have fun. If you cook, fix her favorite and in either case, clean up too!
9. If you go out on date, you schedule the babysitter, choose the spot, and treat her like a lady by opening the door for her, escorting her into the restaurant, and talk only to each other. Tell the waiter you’ll call him/her when you need them. Every couple needs a quiet date in a corner booth w/out any distractions. Both of you sit on the same side of the booth with your back to the crowd.

See why he gets an A+? 🙂 Oh yes!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

Coronavirus · God's character · God's Love

Why Is God Allowing this to Continue?

RefreshHer1 Comment

You may have heard me say this before, but I was blessed with a wonderful dad.  However, he did disappoint me from time to time.  I don’t know how he could’ve done it, but that’s the truth.  He just disappointed me!

When I was a child, there were times when I was sure he was going to take our family up to the frozen custard stand where we would all get sweet treats.  But I can’t tell you the number of times when we were in the car and I was sure he would pull into the little parking lot of that building, and he would drive right on by! How could he do that to a child?

As a little girl I could’ve come up with two conclusions – 

  1. He didn’t have the power to do it. No money for a 50 cent cone?  Nope.  That wasn’t true. He had a good job and was wise with his finances.
  2. He didn’t love me and didn’t care that I would suffer without that custard.
    Nope.  That wasn’t true.  He proved his love for me in much greater ways by his sacrifice for my real needs.

I never did accuse my dad of either one of those things.  You know why?  I knew him.  I had spent time with him.  I learned what he was like, and he was neither powerless nor unloving.  I simply learned that I could trust him.  I learned that in the time that he knew was best for me and my family, he would take us to get ice cream.  If he didn’t do it now, I knew there was a better reason, and I was okay with that, simply because I knew him.

I recently had someone accuse God of those two accusations in regards to the Coronavirus, saying that:
He either can’t stop it, or
He doesn’t care about people suffering.

The only answer to give a scoffer of God is God’s Word –  the written explanation of Who He is.  He has the Words of life. 

There are so many explanations I could share, but I just read this passage in Exodus 13,

 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter.

“No, of course He didn’t lead them the shorter path,” an scoffer might say! 

 “He took them out to the wilderness where they would wander and not have food and water!  He doesn’t care!  He loves to see people suffer! Or maybe He isn’t able to help.!”

Any time we come to a question about God, why He’s doing something or doing nothing,  we must look to His character for the answers. We have to learn what He is like. Is He just mean-hearted?  Is He not powerful enough to change things?  

In this situation, we need to keep reading.  The next verse says, For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.[

Did you catch it?  There was danger on that closer/easier path! It would have been easy for the Israelites to think that the Via Maris was the best way to go; but the dangers of the way were too great, though they could not see them.  It was the road where Egypt’s military outposts were. God knew the people of Israel were not ready to face this yet (lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt).

God anticipated the dangers they could not see. 

Based on that verse, what do we learn about our God?  

  • He is providential!  He saw to things ahead of time and protected them from those dangers that they weren’t even aware of!
  • He is a God of love.  A God who didn’t love them would’ve let them get entangled in any kind of danger.
  • He is righteous.  He led them correctly.  He cannot do a wrong thing or have the wrong motive as you and I would!  Why?  Because He is righteous.

Refresh your trust in a loving, providential and righteous God. As a child, I could trust my father because I knew him. We can’t trust a God we don’t know. Draw to Him and learn of Him. We might not understand His ways, but we can come to know His heart.

Next week I’m going to expand on that last sentence. I hope you’ll come back for the conclusion!

In the meantime, wash you hands and remember He is in control.