Purposeful Womanhood

 By Jessica Edwards While living here in the South for over 28 years, I've come to know several southern words or sayings with meanings that most folks from not 'round here ain't got no idea what they mean. 😉 One of those sayings is “Well, bless your heart.” Sometimes it's used as a sweet way to give comfort or gratitude. Other ways it's used as a polite way to insult someone. I did a little searching to see when and where this saying originated, and according to Google, the first time it was used in print was in Henry Fielding's 1732 play The Miser . We’ve been blessing people’s hearts for nearly 300 years. That's actually not true, because did you know Moses uses a phrase very similar to “bless your heart” in Deuteronomy 29:19? Setting the Stage Let's set the stage first. The people of Israel had just come through the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the rebellious murmuring generation had died, and Moses was taking the opportunity to repeat t...

 By Glenda Little In Matthew 19:16 it says, "Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?". This man was seeking, and he found the opportunity to ask Jesus a question. He wanted to know what good thing must I do to get eternal life? That's the million dollar question that many people ask when seeking Jesus. It's free, but be mindful that God gave His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins on a cross. Jesus didn't die for just for one sin but for ALL of our sins. One of the responses to the young rich man's question was he must sell everything and give to the poor. Jesus wasn't talking in the human aspect of it. Wow, what if an unbeliever were told he had to do that? That's a hard one to swallow, I can just hear it! "But Jesus, I've worked so hard for everything I have and you want me to do what?" The Bible says that this young man went away sad, but my belief is that he was being ch...

 By Carrie Moyer Nine months ago I sighed realizing that my third trimester would span the hottest months of summer. But I was grateful and excited for the new life given to our family. My appreciation for good air conditioning would increase. Yet the past three months have borne with them a heavy sorrow, more oppressive than summer heat. I would have been pulling out baby clothes, washing them, packing my hospital bag, buying newborn diapers, counting down the days to July 11, but the Lord had other plans. After carrying our precious baby for fourteen weeks, I had to rest in the sovereignty of my Lord. I had to trust anew that His love alone will delight and sustain me. I had to know that His plan is perfect and His purposes good and His judgments right. His Spirit had to nurture in me the resolve to declare, "Though my desires be not fulfilled, Though my dreams be not completed, Though nothing I hoped for came to be, 'yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy...

 By Daphi sha I Syiem A heritage always dates back to the things of the past handed down to us; living in it is carrying the legacy. A heritage can take the form of land, possessions, status, reputation, family line, race, culture and traditions, monuments, and geographical spaces. Such heritage is a gift from God to celebrate uniqueness. All of these are designed by God, and it’s our gift from God. There is a story which supports an eternal meaning of a heritage.  There was a woman who was a first convert, who followed and chose Christ over her earthly inheritance, who was persecuted.  They seized her birthright. Through her testimony I can vividly draw out the picture of what eternal heritage looks like.  Her bold steps impacted many and had a ripple effect that continued to pass till the fifth generation.  The family witnessed the hand of God leading them throughout until this time. Her story gave me a perspective to be rich towards God -- the eternal heri...

 By Glenda Little Isaiah 6:8 (NIV) Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And I said, "Here I am, send me!" Every week when I cut our 2 acre property I enjoy singing while cutting. That way the neighbors can't hear me when I sing out of tune. I also take time to talk to God. Now don't worry, I pray with my eyes open, just in case a tree decides to jump out in front of me! I have had some "not paying attention" moments on the mower. Today, as I sat there riding along, I decided to reflect on how God has moved in my life since the last time I mowed. This past week I learned to be available, ready, and willing. When God puts things in front of you that He wants you to respond to, you must be prepared! Being "available" is asking God to use you wherever needed, "ready" is reading your Bible daily and praying, and "willing" is saying Lord, here am I, send me. My husband,...

 By Cherie Greshko Labeled By Others My life has been one of many adventures. I have realized that there are many labels one could have tagged on me as a youngster and beyond. Labels like ADHD, bipolar, dyslexic, autistic, socially backwards, and a few others too painful to mention. Labeled By God But how does God “label” me?  He calls me beloved, chosen, accepted, adopted, redeemed, forgiven! (see Ephesians 1). I am a Child of the King and I have royal blood flowing through my veins! In Isaiah 43:1 He says, “...Fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name: thou art mine.” In Isaiah 49:16 He reminds us "Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; ..." In John 10:27-30 Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish; neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them ...

 By Jessica Edwards "PACKED WITH PEANUTS, SNICKERS REALLY SATISFIES"... that's what it tells me on the package anyway. If it's true, then why do I want another one, and another, and another? Could it be that my Snickers bar really doesn't satisfy all that much?  Have you ever been dissatisfied in a spiritual sense, filling up on "spiritual Snickers" but never fully satisfied? I have.  Some of those spiritual Snickers have been a longing to see success in ministry, looking for a more "fulfilling" ministry, or just a different ministry or church. I've longed for the Snickers of affirmation/validation, friendships/relationships, and successful homeschooling and parenting. None of these things are sinful in and of themselves (just like eating a Snickers bar isn't sinful), but if these are the things I am seeking for satisfaction, I will find myself dissatisfied and waiting to take another bite from another Snickers. In Psalm 17:15, David sa...