Purposeful Womanhood

 By Jessica Edwards   Several years ago, I mindlessly tossed a peach pit off of my back deck and into the hedge. That particular peach pit was gone forever, or so I thought. It has since sprouted, taken root, grown into a tree, bloomed, and is now producing fruit. We would call it a "volunteer" peach tree. It did exactly what the Creator created it to do.  Often, I have heard women frustrated with the notion that they don't know what their purpose is. They don't know what "assignment" God has given them to do, and they spin their wheels in frustration, doubt, and disappointment trying to figure out what BIG thing the Lord has for them.  Jesus says in John 15:4-5 " Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing."  ...

 By Glenda Little What does seeking God's guidance for your life look and feel like?  I love this definition for guidance... Advice or information aimed at resolving a problem or difficulty, especially as given by someone in authority. Who do we look to for guidance? Do we always look to our Heavenly Father for guidance for our lives?  He desires for us to seek Him. God tells us in Psalm 32:8, "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye." (NKJV) Have you ever been asked to lead a Bible study, teach a Sunday School class, or work in the nursery?  Are we like Moses and say, You want me to do what? Or, do you say YES immediately? Have you asked God if this is the right thing to say YES to? What you just said "yes" to may not have been His guidance and will for your life. He may have something else in the works for you. A place where He alone knows you would be great at serving. Most importantly in our daily lives, ...

 By Glenda Little "But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt." Genesis 19:26   My husband, Steve, and I live in Hayesville, NC, and on our way home from town there's a church sign that says on one side, "Remember Lot's Wife", and on the other side is posted a weekly Bible verse. I mentioned to my husband that the statement about Lot's wife has been on the sign for several months and has really caught my attention. I decided I needed to do some research about it.  Lot's Lot Lot's story begins in Genesis 11 where we are told he left the city of Ur with his Uncle Abram "to go into the land of Canaan" (Gen. 11:31). Lot and his family seemed to bring drama at every turn. Let's fast forward and look at his family's story in Genesis 19. Many of us are familiar with the story, but it's always good to review it. Because of the grievous sins of Sodom and Gomorrah, God directed angels to destroy it. In G...

 By Carrie Moyer “Abraham planted a Tamarisk Tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God. And Abraham sojourned many days in the land of the Philistines.” (Genesis 21:33-34) For generations, Abraham's descendants would look at the Tamarisk Tree in Beersheba and benefit from its shade during hot, dry days. If they knew he had planted it before the land belonged to him, they surely were astonished! Young tamarisk trees require much care and attention, and those who planted them did not live long enough to watch them mature, nor to enjoy the full benefits of their cooling shade. Men customarily planted these grand trees on land they already owned and intended to bequeath to their own children so that generations of their own descendants would enjoy the product of their labor. Abraham was a sojourner, a wanderer. He did not own the land he dwelt in. He was surrounded by strangers. Yet he trusted the word of his Lord, the Everlasting God, that one ...

 By Carrie Moyer Growing up, I was taught to view Christmas as a special opportunity to celebrate and reflect on Christ's birth and His reason for coming to earth. Now that I'm grown, during the Christmas season, I continue to focus my Bible reading and meditation specifically on the prophecies and events pertaining to our Savior's birth. I walked through many valleys this past year, or perhaps it was one great dark valley. Close friends buried children. I grieved the losses of three of my own unborn babies. We said goodbye to a grandmother, an uncle, a dear friend. We comforted and prayed for others as they wept over loved ones. More than ever this past year, I am realizing how desperately I need Christ, how crucial was His coming to earth as the God-man, how pertinent our hope that one day He will come again. As I share in His suffering, I am realizing what a sacrifice He made in coming to earth. What love He demonstrated in all that He did for us!   Christ, ...

 By Hannah McClurg Discouragement hits hard. This past summer was discouraging, so much so that prayer almost seemed pointless. Everything seemed beyond the realm of possibility, and sometimes I didn’t know how to think about the next step. I began to adopt the outlook that the circumstances were beyond the Lord’s ability to “work together for good.” (Rom. 8:28) And then, one morning, while reading in the book of Acts, the Lord had a lesson for me. The Lame Beggar   “And a man who had been lame from his mother’s womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple. When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms.” (Acts‬ ‭3:2-3‬) * The man in Acts 3 was simply asking for what he expected to receive. He was poor and lame, and he wasn’t going to expect anything above or beyond what was normally given. But, didn’t t...

By Jessica Edwards Her name was Virginia Teeters. She was an older woman, and I knew her when I was young and we attended the same church. She was a dear friend to my grandma, and everyone who knew her loved her.  She had only one major flaw... she liked to pray long prayers at Wednesday night prayer meetings. Some nights these prayers would last 20-30 minutes. After the pastor was finished with his Bible study, we would split up into two or three- women with women and men with men- and pray together. The women were very careful where they sat on Wednesdays, always marking where Virginia Teeters was sitting. We felt sorry for the unfortunate woman who was stuck having to pray with Mrs. Teeters.  Some said it was inappropriate for Mrs. Teeters to pray that long at church. She needed to keep those long prayers for when she was in her prayer closet, but do you know what is interesting? I never heard Mrs. Teeters pray (No way was I going to get stuck with her!). She never put hers...