Ok...so Chapter 1: Growing in the Lord! Reading this chapter was a fresh reminder on the priority that we need to place on growing in our knowledge of God...IT NEEDS TO BE #1!!! We think that we can just do it later...and that later never happens. We remain babies in our knowledge wanting only milk when we should be teachers eating meat and potatoes.
I will be the first to admit the struggle that it is to find time alone with God...reading my Bible, journaling, and praying. Before I got married, I really didn't have that daily time with God. I loved Him, was saved, but I had remained a baby spiritually because I didn't prioritize gaining knowledge from God's Word that would equip me with the sword and shield that I would need to face daily battles (especially those that go along with marriage!) It was when I read this book for the first time right after I married that I realized that I needed to get my act together spiritually. I realized that if my marriage was going to work at all, I was going to have lean each second on God's Word (and I had no idea what it really said!!!) So...I bought a Bible that I could understand (still LOVE the Message version), made a spot for my Bible study materials, forced myself to get out of bed early, and then God took over. For four years, He took me on the wildest thrill of my life through studying His Word with Him. An obsession took over, and I could not get enough! If something didn't make sense, I dug and dug until it did. I could get lost for hours in God's Word and not even realize how long I had been there! THEN...I had a baby!!! And the sleepless nights turned into sleepless days, and for the first 10 months of my sweet baby's life, I lived in the Twilight Zone...not knowing the day, time, and at some moments, my name!!! As far as my time with God, it was a daily struggle. Most days it did not happen because of mental exhaustion, and I MISSED Him madly!!! You see, I had experienced Him and the thrill of the adventrue that He took me on...then all of a sudden I did not have a moment to think of anything besides nursing, diaper changes, and sleep schedules! Satan used these "should be" daily blessings of serving my family to distract me from my main focus...my relationship with God!!! My focus was distracted, and I was unable to experience the joy of my family because I was burdened by so many other things. Please hear my heart...God is not telling us to stop doing good things for our families!!! In fact, He takes much pleasure in seeing us take care of our sweet husbands and children, but as women, we cannot do these things completely, wholly, joyfully, and healthily unless we are seeking Him first.
I wanted to share these things with you because I hear your hearts and your struggles...because I have them myself. This journey that we are on as women is full of up and downs, twists and turns, and we feel overwhelmed if we have to add one more thing into our schedule. But as Elizabeth says, "God's Word works!!" If we find the time to invest in studying God's Word, the blessings will pour heavily down on us...and our families!!! The healthier we are as wives and mamas spiritually, the healthier your family will be as well. That is the wonderful overflow of God's Word, it will effect so many other people besides ourselves in positive ways that our minds cannot begin to comprehend. All that God asks from us is to be obedient, equipping ourselves with knowledge of Him through the study of His Word and prayer...then He takes over and begins the transformation process of our hearts!
For our weekly blog assignment...
1. I encourage you to read and do the Little Things that Make a Difference section at the end of Chapter 1. Several of the steps you can already check off just because you have committed to this Bible study! Step 6...please do not ignore! You may want to begin a personal prayer journal and write this commitment in it...there will be much growth that can come from keeping your thoughts and prayers to God in one location.
2. Choose only 1 of the following questions to comment on the blog about...
* What meant the most to you as a married woman from Chapter 1?
* What offered you the greatest challenge as a wife?
* What information was new or served as a fresh reminder for you as you seek to follow after God's own heart in your marriage?
10 comments:
I chose the 3rd question. In the past, my Bibly study and alone time with God were very inconsistent. I would do great for a couple of weeks and then fall off of the wagon. The Daniel Bible study got me hooked. I could not wait to get up to spend my time alone with God. I realized that my entire family benefits from my study. So glad to say that I have not stopped! I feel that I finally accept God's love for what it is. It is just like what 1 Cor 13:4-7 says. God is love. The part of chapter 1 that was a fresh reminder of how exciting Bible study can be was on page 20 under Tending Your Growth. It says, "Don't merely observe from the grandstand; don't just turn out to jog a couple of laps each morning. Train diligently-your spiritual progress depends on it."
What information was new or served as a fresh reminder for you as you seek to follow after God's own heart in your marriage?
I have been very sparatic with my time alone with God and I miss it more than I realized. It seems like life has just taken over and shoved Him to the side. Even though I attend church every Sunday, Sunday school each week, pray daily, and am participating in two Bible studies I still feel that there is a void. After reading this chapter I realized that that hole is coming from the lack of God's Word! My husband has complained some lately about my harshness, which I am not normally like that! I've realized that getting back into God's pure word and making that daily commitment is going to be the only way I can find Him and myself again!!
In answering question 2, my greatest challenge of being a wife, has been allowing my husband to be the leader/head of our family. In the past, I felt as if he was passing this off to me, but I had no problem being submissive. We have both grown through a lot of prayer. Keeping God first does make the greatest difference.
I really loved the challenge to pray for your husband three times a day - morning, noon, and right before he comes home from work. It's easy to say that we are praying for someone but not actually follow through. This is a great way to help us "follow through" in praying for our husbands.
For me the most challenging thing is to put God first. I'm so busy running around in circles chasing Grace Anne, cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, to really settle down and study the Bible. Mostly because I'm selfish with my limited "down time." That's the only time I get to do what I love to do, read for pleasure or work crossword puzzles. I need to learn to take 10-15 minutes a day during nap time (if there is one, ha!) to sit and actually read and study.
With the addition of a second child, I have felt myself mentally spinning out of control since we brought Ella Kate home. There is no longer much down time left to decide how I'm going to spend my time, I just have to do it. For me I have felt God tugging at me for quite sometime to do more work for His kingdom and seek Him more deeply. And during most of that time, I've been trying to decide the "when, how, & the where" of doing that. It is finally sinking in is that all I really have to do is put Him first and He is going to put everything else in the right perspective.
Sorry I am late posting my comment for chapter one, but that is why I chose to answer question 2 "What offered you the greatest challenge as a wife?". The section "Tending your Growth-Spiritual growth results from discipline and self-denial" made me realize that I want to be more disciplined in my bible study, prayer life, and as a wife and mother. Even when life is hectic and things aren't going according to plan, I want to have the stamia to finish the race.
Macki - I am the one who deleted the last two comments just so you know! I accidentally posted my week 2 comments in week 1. I do plan to come back to week one soon though...
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