She makes linen garments and sells them...

WHAT!?
There is much to be learned from the Proverbs 31 woman, much to which we should aspire. It is apparent to me that this woman was a fine seamstress. So in my quest to be a Proverbs 31 woman (or in my search to cure boredom) I decided to take up sewing. First project? A costume. I really wanted to be Queen Esther for Halloween but I doubted Esther would have worn anything that would have left her as scantily clad as most of the woman on the fronts of the costume packages. Alas, I decided I MUST learn how to sew and I should start with  making my costume. So just 4 days before I was to wear said costume my feat began. Fortunately, with the help of my dear mother, (who may or may not have wanted to throttle me as she tried to teach me over the phone-- from 500 miles away) I finished this project:

 

Sure it looks fine at first glance but please don't look closely! At the completion of this project I vowed I would never thread another bobbin or complete another backstitch.

Fast forward one week. There I sat wishing I could sew something just a bit (or a lot) better than the last project. I decided I should sew an apron. And here I sit today after my 500th attempt to make the first part of this apron, a ruffle. It is now I realize how the Proverbs 31 woman procured all of her wonderful qualities: she started sewing! In learning how to sew, you must keep your patience, your arms get strong (v. 17) from all the cutting and pinning and your dignity(v. 25) is most certainly tested (there may have been some yelling and tantrums during the completion my first project).

I may never sell my garments and my merchandise may never be profitable but one day I will learn to sew and on that day I will surely have gained some biblical qualities.


May Christ’s love and blessings be upon you and yours.

To vent or not to vent?

Occasionally in life we may have to stop and wonder whether or not something is sinful, especially when we feel it is something so normal. One such area is complaining. Our human nature tells us we must vent our frustrations and I think that can definitely be healthy but at what point does it become sinful. A close friend and I were discussing this recently and it really made me stop and think. I really like to share my frustrations with those closest to me, the reason? Maybe I like to get feedback or maybe it just feels good to whine for a little bit. However, 1 Corinthians 10:24 says, “Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.” You could apply that verse in this way, when you are complaining or venting is it bashing the person you are complaining about? Does complaining lift up anyone or is it good for anyone aside from yourself?  How you answer these questions would help to determine if what you are doing is sinful or not. Verse 32 says, “Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God--” Consider these questions. Does your complaining cause another to stumble? Does your venting turn into a gossip session? I’ll leave you with this verse to get your wheels turning. “Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged.” –James 5:9 

I just want to add a side note and say, I, too, complain and I find myself wondering if I am guilty of a sin because of it. I am not approaching this with a self-righteous attitude. Nor am I saying that I will never again express my frustrations. What I am saying is that the next time I start airing out my tensions, I will try to make sure it doesn’t amount to just another gossip session. I encourage you to do the same.

May Christ’s love and blessings be upon you and yours.

You become what you gaze upon...

Or listen to. Or read. Or watch.

The conviction of trying to keep a pure heart and mind is something that has been weighing on me lately. Romans 12:12 says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” What this verse says to me is that we are no longer supposed to do things that this world considers acceptable. We are to change what we watch, read,  listen to, even how we treat others.  

Why is this? We live in a dark world and we are the light to this dark world (Matthew 5:14). We have to set ourselves apart.

This is not an easy task but Christ never promised that it would be. In fact when He was here on this earth He told His disciples (including us), “If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:19) From the moment we choose Christ, we choose to be set apart, to be different. We need to read the Bible and find the truth that Christ calls us to, find your convictions and stick with them. Even if sticking to them means being hated by the world (and even those close to you). People will probably treat you unkindly when you say you don’t want to read the book or watch the movie that you consider to have elements that are not Christ-like, but in the end you must decide which is more important, the approval of this world or the approval of Christ.

May Christ’s love and blessings be upon you and yours.

The beginning.

I have had previous blogs, all of them needless ramblings of various aspects of my life. Topics flowing from cooking to homeschooling to being a mom to reminiscing and on and on. I never kept up with any of these blogs. A few months here and there and then nothing. I hope that this blog is different. I hope this blog finds a deeper purpose than just an outlet for my thoughts. You see just the other night my husband and I were discussing "being great." He says, "I've always had the drive to be great at what I do." "Really?" I reply. "I have never had that desire, I've always been just average." "What am I good at?" I asked him. "Writing, you're good at writing," was his response. I have never considered myself a good writer. I always made A's on written assignments but they never had any heart in them. This conversation got me thinking, what AM I good at? What do I desire to be good at? I didn't come up with an answer that night. A few days passed and my cousin was asking me about a question about starting a new blog, I decided I, too, would start a new blog. I didn't know what about at that time, just another blog for babbling on about my life. While I was thinking of a title for this blog, it hit me, the thing at which I wanted to be great. I wanted to be great at serving Christ in my daily life. I wanted to be a great Christ-like mother and wife. I wanted to conduct my household with His greatness. And thus this blog was born.

My hope is that this blog would speak to other women whose goal it is in life to be the woman described in Proverbs 31.  For those of you not familiar with this passage its specific location is Proverbs 31:10-31, I encourage you to pore over this passage and examine your heart. Is this the type of woman you strive to be?  Some of the characteristics of the Proverbs 31 woman are: trustworthiness, diligence, hard-worker, strength, generosity, dignity, wisdom and kindness. As v. 10 says, "she is far more precious than jewels."

These are the things I seek to be, greatly be. I diligently and earnestly pray to be. So as the days go by I will be posting here, my thoughts, opinions and experiences as I continue along my journey seeking to be a great servant of Christ right here in my very own home.

May Christ's love and blessings be upon you and yours.