A Trustworthy and Enriching Wife...

To continue our talk on the Proverbs 31 woman...

Proverbs 31:11-12 NLT Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

As women who seek to become all God has called us to be in every area of our lives, we must also seek to be the woman God has called us to be for our husbands.  We must be trustworthy and add value to his (husband) life.  For a husband to trust in his wife, she must be honest and truthful. She must be naked before him--hiding nothing.  I believe that when a husband knows that his wife is naked before him, it produces trust...ongoing trust because she has nothing to hide.  We must add value to his life by contributing to the relationship and supporting him in prayer and deed.

As a "Proverbs 31 woman," a wife must look for ways to be good to her husband.  I believe that her relationship with the Lord will cause this scripture to manifest in her life.  Sometimes, a wife has to look beyond her husband and remember the Lord and His love for her...remember God's faithfulness and sovereignty.  Truthfully, no wife is going to want to be nice when she is upset or there's an unresolved issue.  Face it, we're imperfect people who serve a perfect God.  That is what we must remember! That is how we become who God has called us to be! In every situation, we remember God. Do everything as unto the Lord. (Colossians 3:23) There you have it--that is how she does her husband good and not harm all the days of her life.

God bless you! Be encouraged!

A Virtuous Woman

Know the "Proverbs 31" Woman? Doesn't she just sound amazing? Well over the next few blog entries, I want to talk about her.  She is so inspiring so let's talk about who she is and who so many of us desire to become...

Proverbs 31:10 Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies.

The dictionary defines virtuous as conforming to moral and ethical principles; morally excellent; upright. A very good example of this is Romans 12:2 which says, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.  Romans 12:2 NLT states it more plainly, "Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will learn to now God's will for you which is good and pleasing and perfect.

I am convinced that this woman of high moral character that the writer speaks of in Proverbs 31:10 is a woman who seeks the Lord with everything that is within her.  Her behavior mirrors Christ and she seeks to please Him in every area of her life.  The writer also says that she is more precious than rubies.  This woman is rare and valuable to the kingdom of God.

Today lets become more like this woman.  Let us allow God to transform us in every area of our lives by submitting our will to His will.  I pray that we would all seek the Lord today. I pray that we would have hearts and steadfast spirits that are sensitive to His voice.  Let the only one we copy today be our Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus name, Amen.

BEFORE you finish praying...

This is an old post from about 3 years ago that I want to share...

Scripture Ref: Genesis 23: 1-15.

In the scripture reference, Abraham sent his servant out to find a wife for his son Issac. Abraham gave him directions on what to do based on what God promised him. In verse 15, we learn that BEFORE the servant even finished praying, God had already answered his prayers. (The servant prayed that the woman who was to be chosen said and did a particular thing so that he would know that is what God wanted.)

Isn't that awesome?

I believe that this is true today. When we are OBEDIENT to God's Word and are walking according to His Will, BEFORE we can even finish our prayer God has ALREADY answered it!

We know this because God has a plan for each and everyone of us. We just have to be OBEDIENT! We all have fallen short of God's glory and we will not be made perfect until Jesus comes back. However, this is not an excuse for us not to walk according to the commandments that God has set before us. It is not an excuse for us to continue in sin.

Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has plans for us...plans to prosper us and not harm us...plans to give us hope and a future.

I'd like to encourage you this week to seek God daily....seek His will and His plans for your life! When you walk with God and begin to pray for things that He has already ordained for you, know that your prayers have already been answered because it is what God has designed for you!

I know that we all want to experience the fullness and favor of God! We all know what is required of us as well so let God renew your mind and spirit today!

Prayer: Eternal God. We come to you thanking you just for being who you are! We thank you that you love us in spite of everything we've said, done, or thought in our hearts. We come to you asking that you forgive us of our sins and unrighteousness. We ask that you create in us clean hearts and renew within us the right spirit! We come seeking Your plans and Your Will for our lives. Show us what you would have us do. We honor you and praise you today! Show us You in our lives this week! In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen!

God speaks through dreams too

Good morning!

I'd like to share something with you all that I read a few nights ago that resonated with my spirit!  In Daniel 7:1, Daniel had a dream and saw visions as he lay in his bed.  He wrote down the dream...

I thought that was very interesting because I believe that this is one of the ways that God speaks to us (through our dreams).  This is where many of our visions come from.  When I was in grad school, whenever I would have a dream or any kind of thought while I laid in bed, I would get up and write it down.  I think its very important that we get up and write them down.  How many times have you dreamed about something, knew it was important, woke up the next morning and could not remember it?

Writing the dream down will allow us to envision in the conscious state what God is trying to say to us.  Sometimes the dreams may be very clear and we know exactly what God is saying.  Other times, we need to pray about it more.

I know that getting up out of your sleep is not a fun thing to do but I believe its well worth it.  I just had a dream two nights ago and I "thought" about getting up to write it down but was too "something" to do it.  I have no idea what that dream was about now.

Even if you think (or know) you will remember it when you wake up, write it down anyway.  Write it as a reminder to yourself of how God spoke to you and gave you insight.  The next time you need God to speak to you, you will have a reminder that He has done it before and that He will do it again. (It may not be in the same way) He is faithful!

I thought this was awesome and I hope that it encourages you today! Wishing you many blessings!

Trust your life to the One Who Created You

So many times in life we put our trust in so many things. We worry constantly over our finances, our future, our relationships, our jobs, etc.  During times of worry, we very seldom stop to think about our Creator.  Just like He created us, He created everything else in this world. (The earth is the Lords and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. Psalm 24:1)

Worrying does not and will not change anything. So today and any other day, when worry creeps up on you, began to pray. We must pray without ceasing. Talk to your Creator about your problem(s).  Go to your quiet place. Pray. Listen. Pray. He will listen and answer you. Be diligent and steadfast in your prayers. Seek the Lord with all of your heart. Once you're finished praying, do not start to worry, instead Praise God! Praising God puts your mind, thoughts and heart on Him and off your problem(s).

In good times and bad times, be careful not to neglect your Creator! Trust your life to the One Who Created You! Be encouraged!

Good company or bad company

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."

Take a moment to think about your friends, loved ones, coworkers and associates. Think about the people who you interact with daily.  Have you ever found yourself saying a new word?  It doesn't have to be a bad word but just a new word that you've picked up on from someone else?  You've heard the word so many times from this person that it has just become a part of who you are.  I have.  For example, my husband used to say two things ALL the time and I do mean ALL! LOL!  These two things are: "you good?" and "matter of fact."  I would tease him about these words but would find those two phrases slipping out of my mouth from time to time. (Honey I'm not saying that you're bad company--stay with me here)

Have you ever found yourself doing things that you didn't use to do? Have you found yourself in places you didn't use to go? Places that made you uncomfortable have now made you comfortable?  Have you really ever been in a place and thought, "how did I get here?"

One thing to remember is that once you're around something or someone for so long, you become like that thing or person.  Whether good or bad, you're going to change.  I would just like to encourage you today to make sure that you're exposing your mind and spirit to the right things and people...people who are going to encourage you to grow and help you proceed in the right direction.  Do not be fooled to think that their (those you are with most) ways won't become a part of you because they will. See our key verse.

Be encourgaed and continue to strive toward greatness!

Testing of Character

Psalm 105:19 Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.

Many times when God places dreams in our hearts and we purpose in our heart to fulfill it and seek after it, we encounter many obstacles along the way.  Our scripture today tells us that the Lord is the one who tested Joseph’s character.  Do you remember all of the things that Joseph encountered before Joseph’s dreams had been fulfilled?

Let us first recount Joseph’s dreams.  His first dream (Genesis 37:6) is that he is in a field with his brothers, tying up bundles of grain.  Suddenly his bundle stood up, and his brothers’ bundles all gathered around and bowed low before his.  His second dream (Genesis 37:9) was that the sun, moon, and eleven starts bowed low before him!  These dreams signified that Joseph would be ruler.

Now let us revisit the obstacles he encountered before his dreams came to past.  First, his brothers sold him into Slavery. (Even as a slave to Potiphar, God was with him and still gave him success in everything that he did) Second, Joseph was put in prison because Potiphar’s wife lied on him. (Still the Lord was with Joseph in prison and made him a favorite with the prison warden.)

One day Joseph was called upon to interpret Pharaoh’s dream.  After Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of the entire land of Egypt!! Dream fulfilled!

No matter what obstacles you are facing.  Remember that they are just stepping stones to get you where you need to be.  This is just a testing of your character.  The obstacles will only make you a better person and you will be better equipped when the time comes for the dream(s) to be fulfilled.

I imagine that Joseph became more patient throughout the process and even developed a better relationship with God seeing as how God continued to give him success even when his circumstances weren’t that great!  I imagine that this caused Joseph to give God even more praise and glory!  Joseph gave credit to God for everything that had happened. Genesis 45:5-8 NLT states “But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place.  It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives.  This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting.  God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and to preserve many survivors.  So it was God who sent me here, not you! And he is the one who made me an adviser to Pharaoh-the manager of his entire palace and the governor of all of Egypt!”

So today if you’re encountering difficulties while working toward fulfilling your God-given dream, remember that its only a testing of your character and you will be better for it!  God’s plans are for your good and to give you hope and a future. (Read Jeremiah 29:11)

Prayer:  Father in heaven, we honor and praise your holy name today! You are Most worthy of all of our praise! Sustain us during the times when our character is being tested.  Give us strength and help us to not lose sight of what you have in store for us! Things that we can’t even imagine!  You are so great to us and your faithful love endures forever and ever! In Jesus name, be our strength, Amen.