Thy Maker is Thine Husband

Isaiah 54

 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.

² Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;
³ For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
⁴ Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.
⁵ For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
⁶ For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.
⁷ For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
⁸ In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer.
⁹ For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
¹⁰ For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
¹¹ O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.
¹² And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.
¹³ And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.
¹⁴ In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.
¹⁵ Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
¹⁶ Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.
¹⁷ No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

Encourage Yourself in the Lord

"And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God."

1Samuel 30:6

This was a great help for me today. I hope for you too.

Beth

Not my will... But Thine

The other morning I read the story about Joseph being sold by his brothers, then sent to prison by Potiphar to my youngest daughter; then later read about Jesus' betrayal and crucifixion in Mark with my older girls.

It seems like this past year or so the Lord has wanted to convey something to me, that years ago I wouldn't of comprehended, nor would of accepted.

That there are people who are willing to suffer in order to be obedient to God, and God uses that pain and suffering to fulfill His purpose. A glorious purpose.

Look at Jesus.
What was the outcome of His willingness to face and walk through suffering?

 Glory.

Victory.

Hope.

Love.

For His Father. For us.

Look at Josephs life. He could of become embittered towards his brothers who did the harm, embittered towards God, and disbelieving of the promises He had from God. But he remained true and faithful, and forgiving and TRUSTING that God still loved Him even when he was in a dark pit, even when he spent years in prison as an innocent person. It is so easy to think God has abandoned us when we go through pain and torment. That somehow we are not loved by God because our lives do not reflect the ease of others. It's not true. No matter what you're going through, no matter what your life story is; if you are and will continue to love God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength and you continue to believe in Him and His love and goodness, there is victory in your life. There will be a glory that will be displayed on this earth and for all eternity. Your love and devotion to God and to His son is the only thing that we should live for.

Christ prayed and asked for the cup to be passed from Him, that He wouldn't have to go through something as horrible as He was about to, but He ended the prayer how? Not my will, but Thine.
And what was God's answer to His Sons prayer?
No.
This cup CANNOT pass from you. Did He not love His Son? Yes He did! But He knew the reason for, and the benefit of His Son going through it, and His Son was willing.

I think about how many years I prayed and prayed for circumstances to change. Sometimes they did. Sometimes they didn't. I've wondered why some of the things I wanted so badly to change in my life haven't and  have thought God did not love me as much as He loved someone else. That some how I wasn't worthy of good things. Listen; Sometimes pain is a good thing. Sometimes suffering is a good thing. Not when it's caused by our disobedience to God, but if you are a follower of Christ, even then, God will use it to complete the work that He has started and PURPOSED for you.

I'm am not saying that you should suffer any and everything that comes your way. Sometimes we need to protect ourselves and protect our children by getting away from abuse, and we always need to repent and stop our sin that is causing us and others pain. But it is way to often that the message is to get out of a situation because you're not happy. Because you're hurt. Because you're not being loved or fulfilled. That's garbage. Forget about you, and the love affair you have with your ideals.

Beg God for a love for Him. A love to be so devoted that you are able to withstand heartache and disappointment for the sake of being obedient to His will. Your hearts desires matter, but if your hearts desires super cede your willingness to go forward with what ever God's answers to those heart desires are your not living a life of complete surrender.


This entry has the potential of being taken entirely out of context. I hope it doesn't. I hope who ever reads this, has read the story of Jesus, and Joseph, and of so many others in the Word and in this life who have surrendered their will and circumstances to be used how ever God wants; and knows it is what is best for them, for Him, and for others while at the same time knowing and trusting He loves them!
 I have chased after, yearned for things and circumstances, more than I have for Christ. Over the past few years the Lord has graciously shown me HE is the reward. Not a picture perfect family or income. Nor a life that skips over sorrows that I think I could never or should never have to bear.

When we accept our lot out of trust and obedience, the portion is HIM. If I have Him I have something to give to others. I have something that satiates my longings and eases my heart in trials.

Once upon a time I had dreams and hopes, but now my dreams and hopes are to be like Joseph, and Jesus. To believe that God loves me even when I am hurting and in a miserable circumstance and my hope is to persevere through them rather than avoid them. Are your hands open to what ever God pours forth, or only open to what you want?

Beth

The Lonely Keeper

For many women and young girls whose heart is for home they are very lonely. That lonliness can be caused by a variety of reasons.

One painful and isolating reason is because their life doesnt look like the life of the "ideal keeper"; The woman or daughter who has a loving supportive husband or father who shares their conviction about being a woman.

So they have to balance their convictions with their circumstances. Many women are doing all they can to honor God with their gender, while at the same time living out a life they struggle with. Lets not add to their struggles by seperating them from the crowd of families who have "arrived".

And if you're one of those women who want to be the "ideal" keeper; know it is a pursuit we all equally must strive for because we each are sinners, and prone to sin thus we will never be ideal or never arrive until we have finished this race and are in heaven.

Don't waste your time trying to duplicate someone elses life. The principles of godly womanhood is the goal. Everyone gets there in a different way. Every Keeper of Homes life looks different and thats ok.

Is God more pleased with a woman who cringes at the thought of another child and totally resents motherhood, or with a woman who yearns for more children but her husband says no?
Looks can be decieving. Just strive to do all you can do in honoring God with your gender according to scripture and encourage yourself in the Word when you're feeling seperate and alone from other women or young girls who have supporting husbands and fathers.

If you love Christ and are striving to stay in His will regarding your gender in all the ways you have power over, rejoice and be not discouraged.

He sees you and knows you by name, and He will help you with what ever your lot is. He is your inheritance and your reward. Not the approval of other women.

Beth

Steven Curtis Chapman - One Little Heartbeat at a Time

I dedicated this song to my mom yesterday for Mothers Day. She asked me if I would put it up on her blog so she could dedicate it to all the Mothers who are here on her blog, but I unfortunately forgot...so here it is a day later. Happy Mothers day!
Gabby

Should I Be a Teacher of Good Things?

For over a year now I have struggled greatly with whether or not I have been called to teach women that they should be keepers at home on a public level. At times I've questioned if I should teach it at all.

I look around and see so many "ok" families, and think why should I upset what works for them? Why should I plant a principle so foreign and so offensive in their minds?   All that will happen is people will hate me, make fun of me and tell me I am incorrectly interpreting scripture.

I have gone back and forth over this. I have discussed it with my daughters and a few friends. To be honest, the coward in me wants to walk away. To let people alone, and to live their lives how they see fit.

But I can't.
I know that if I do I am walking away from an issue that destroys women and families. The lack of knowing who we as women were created to be, and what we were created to do effects our entire society. Starting with the individual,to the family, to  the church and to the goverment.
Yes, it's that big. That powerful.
If you don't believe me just LOOK.
Look all around you. The consequences of leaving life up to us to determine who we are and what we are is removing civility from civilazation.
It's removing truth and righteousness from the church, which leaves no church. Only a building where people gather.

You are a fool to think that we have progressed. No we havent. We are slipping further and further to the place where God must step in to deal with the wickedness. The rebellion. God's judgement is not impending. I'ts here. Read Romans chapter one. 
Where does judgement start? With the church!
Those of us who claim to be christians must be found to be faithful. In ALL of the Word of God. With all of His will. Not just His will to go out into the world and make disciples of all nations. That is only one part of being a christian. Of being faithful.

We cannot interpret scripture through a current, cultural lens. It must be to seek and understand what God said and meant through HIS lens. Which never changes. Not with the times, nor with circumstances.

In Titus chapter two, it tells the older women to be a teacher of good things to the younger women.
To teach these things:


To be sober
To love their husbands
To love their children
To be discreet
To be chaste
To be keepers at home
To be good
To be obedient to their own husbands

WHY?

In order that the Word of God be not blasphemed. What does that mean?


*BLASPHE'ME, v.t. [Gr. The first syllable is the same as in blame, blasme, denoting injury; L. loedo, loesus; The last syllable is the Gr.,to speak.]

1. To speak of the Supreme Being in terms of impious irreverence; to revile or speak reproachfully of God, or the Holy Spirit. 1 Ki 21. Mark 3.

2. To speak evil of; to utter abuse or calumny against; to speak reproachfully of.
BLASPHE'ME, v.i. To utter blasphemy.
He that shall blaspheme against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven. Mark 3.

1. To arrogate the prerogatives of God.

*(Websters 1828 Dictionary)
 
(arrogate:1. to claim unwarrantably or presumptuously; assume or appropriate to oneself without right:)

So...

Where does that leave me?
To have no choice but to be a teacher of good things to the younger women.

The fire within my heart is for women to know what a woman is. What her purpose is. And who is her Master. Yes... Master.

Her creator is her master. Apart from Him, she can never know the why of her existence, the purpose of her life. She was made by someone else. For someone else.
She can never be beautiful,  truly beautiful unless she is who she was designed to be.

Apart from God's Word, I can't teach that. He has beautifully illustrated who and what a woman is to be in the Holy Scriptures.

You can't teach anything good from your own reserves, or words. You can't teach what discreet means, or chaste or anything seperate from the one who OWNS those things.  They belong to him. We must take it from Him for it to be pure and true and right.

I started this blog as a means to encourage women who have the understanding of what a keeper at home is, and whose heart and life is trying to walk that out in difficult circumstances. Circumstances that make it hard to be obedient to the Word of God in this area.

I slacked off because I questioned how important it is. Who really cares, and is it really necessary?
I have struggled within my soul and the struggle is over.

Our society is messed up. Our churches are messed up. In order for men to be men, women must be women. It is critical to the family, and the effectivness of the church and it's mission.


Beth

The Best Of Times... Hopelessness

The best times in my life are when I feel the worst and hope is gone.

It is in my darkness that the Lord shines His brightest and gives me a hope. Hope in Him, and trust that all he has for me is for good and not evil. (Jeremiah 29:11)

The unprotected and vulnerable part of me is my heart. It's where Satan attacks. He knows it is the bullseye for gaining a stronghold in me.

It starts with sorrow. Sorrow for not having what I want most. Sorrow turns to fear.
Fear tells me things may be worse than I think they are, Fear tells me things will never change and I will have to live with these things for the rest of my life.
Fear turns into anger, and anger turns into unforgivness and self-centeredness. When all these emotions have been allowed to run their course and it produces no change in my life or situation, I arrive at hopelessness.

It is at the point of hopelessness the Lord picks me up and washes me in His love and reminds me that I don't need to look out for myself and make sure I get whats best for me... thats His job and I'm not trusting Him with me.

Shame overcomes me for not finding my all in Him, and wanting more than giving. Giving what He daily gives me;
Love,
companionship,
faithfulness
and forgivness.

Repentence removes the shame. With repentence I am filled once again with His love. His strength. His power. His purpose.
And His eternal, un-ending hope.

Hope removes sorrow. And sorrow is where it all started.

"And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my stength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong".

2 Corinthians 12: 9, 10