Women, Stop Submitting to Men

Thank you Russell Moore! You speak to my heart.
I can't add anything to what he says - except hear his words!
This is so very timely.

Women, Stop Submitting to Men

Women's Rights

The other day, I saw a link for Women for Obama shared by a friend on Facebook. At first, my reaction was one of curiosity, but as I read the transcript of his speech as well as watched a clip of it, I began to think.

Women’s Rights.  Equal Opportunity.  Freedom Riders.

All of these things – in and of themselves – I think are good. They try to overturn the wrong done to a lot of people. They are watchdogs of sorts to prevent these wrongs from occurring again. They commemorate the strides our culture has taken in giving everyone freedom – not withholding it from anyone.

I enjoy having the right to vote. I felt reassured when I worked fulltime that my pay was equal to that of a man in my position. I enjoyed the freedom to attend college and learn. My mind is of equal value to educate as that of a man. In this time and in this country, there is not much that I do not have access to – being a woman.

… you know there is a “however” coming soon, don’t you?

So as I listened to the President wax eloquently about powerful women and all the things they can do. How there was a woman presidential candidate. How there is a woman Secretary of State. How the current Speaker of the House is addressed as Madame Speaker. I began to be very uncomfortable with how far women have come.

Please do not misunderstand me. I am so very thankful for the suffragettes who marched decades before I was born so that I would be able to go to the polls and vote for presidents, governors, judges, mayors, senators and representatives. I’m also very thankful for the women who decided that it was worth fighting for the right to be educated. I love to learn and it would about kill me to be told – "You are a woman therefore you are of less importance when compared to a educating a man."

While I am thankful and enjoy all these freedoms, I wonder if women should be in these positions of national power.

I wonder if our nation has forgotten how special the role of a woman is to her home.

I believe that in every woman – whether she admits it to herself or not – is the desire to create a place for her husband and family that they are excited to call home. Nothing necessarily fancy, but home! Memories, stories, delicious smells coming from the oven, a soft hug to welcome home from school, a smile that reminds them that whatever day they’ve had – it’s still okay and they are okay because they are home.

There are a lot of homes in our communities that are hurting in a variety of ways, from a variety of things. I wonder... what if we as women were more concerned with our function as God sees us than with our rights as women – how different our nation would be.

In a very real sense, we are on the frontlines of a war. We are providing the foundation for our children to be strong adults who know what they believe and can live it out courageously in a nation that does what is right in its own eyes.

Women of America – Unite! 

God sees all we do for Him. Be encouraged!

Don’t be fooled into thinking you are less valuable because you place your family ahead of your rights. Superwomen are not real women!

Trust Him in our marriages, families, children and nation.

He is worth trusting!!!!

A few Ruthisms for you!

A woman’s home is to her nation as a greenhouse is to a garden.

Strong families = strong nation.

A woman is to her home as sunshine is to a plant.

The difference between life and death.

A woman is to man as jelly is to peanut butter.

Sweetness to his life!

Friendships

That was the theme at the Harvest Bible Chapel’s Women’s Retreat last weekend.  Amy Baker, counselor at Faith Biblical Counseling Center in Lafayette, IN, challenged us to look objectively at our friendships and discern our motives.

View from the porch of our condo at Gull Lake

She described the following Friendship Orientations. For most of us this weekend, we began to fall into either Approval or Control Oriented.

Approval Oriented                   
Control Oriented

Protection Oriented                 
Rightness Oriented

Pleasure Oriented                    
Comfort Oriented          

Prestige Oriented

I began to ask myself…

Do these things categorize me and my relationships??

More importantly, what am I willing to sacrifice in order to attain them?

Do I want to be accepted?

Do I want to be in control?

Do I want to protect myself?

Do I want to be the standard of what is right?

Do I want to be entertained?

Do I want comfort and ease?

Do I want to be part of the in-group?

I think, in part, I want all of those things… but how much of those things are simply part of us as humans?

How many times do I sacrifice transparency and genuineness so I can be accepted, in control, avoid hurt, be right, entertained, comfortable, or be in the in-group?

Do I value approval, control, protection, being right, entertainment, comfort, and being popular more than what God says about those things? 

Taking up my cross and doing radical hard things will take away my control, will make me stand out, may cause me to be hurt, will definitely make me uncomfortable, and I probably won’t have the in-group’s approval.

Am I willing to go that far?  Is Jesus worth it?

If it costs my life and the life of my family, will following Jesus be worth THAT?   
Yes. Yes! YES!!

If you are not a follower of Jesus
but you’re considering it, count the cost.

Because it WILL cost you.  Everything.  Even friendships.

Your life will never be the same because He will radically transform you.

Do not follow Christ blindly – know the cost.

His demands are high – and rightly so.  He died.  For you.

You owe Him every breath for all of eternity. Every moment belongs to Him.

For those of you who follow Jesus, LIVE like you do.

Sunrise Saturday Morning!

Every word, every action, every thought, every single moment is observed and cared about by the Sovereign God who paid your debt.  Your moments are also observed by those around you who are their own masters - who do what is right in their own eyes. 

We are to be different because we have been bought with a price.

This weekend, I was challenged by Luke 6:39-46.

What am I using my time for?

Who am I following?

Am I taking my own log out?

What kind of fruit do I have?

What kind of treasure is coming out of my mouth?

Bottom Line: Is your life, my life different?  What needs to change?

Setting the Thermostat

Rest. Stillness. Quiet.
Those are typically not words that describe a home with a 6, 4, and 2 year old.

I've heard it said that a mom can be either the thermostat or the thermometer of the home. She can either set the temperature or react to the temperature of the home.

I want to be the thermostat not the thermometer. More often than not, however, I'm the thermometer - reacting; feeling the temperature sliding toward harried, frustrated, and irritable. Hungry kids, toy clutter and lateness in starting dinner all add up to... well... not nice things. 

I want to be the temp-setter. I want to set the temperature of our home to quiet, peaceful, and restful. Beginning dinner when I should, giving a fresh fruit snack to stave off the "hungry monster", and playing with the kids while helping to put toys away will contribute to a temperature of quiet, peaceful welcome to a daddy who has worked hard all day long.

The rub comes when I've had "a day" and dinner is not begun and the kids are hungry and not cooperating. That is when it is most difficult to make the choice to be a temp-setter not a reactor melting down. I haven't figured out a magic solution to this yet, but I do know that staying in the Word is critical to my flashpoint. Thinking about scripture, praying for those who God brings to mind, turning my irritations into gratitude, and praising Him for even the interruptions. These things are not a magic solution, but they turn my thoughts away from Me, My, and Mine to see His, Him, and all He is.

I cannot be about Me and about Him at the same time.

I'm sitting here at the Zeeland Recreation Center writing while Michael is in gymnastics and Chloe is in ballet. My time of solitude with no interruptions is quickly coming to a close. Each week, I look forward to this time to think and evaluate. This week, I'm pretty sure my grade would be in the D-F range regarding being a temp-setter.

My goal this week, with God's help, is to turn every part of me to be about His, Him, and who He is.
Join me? :)