What a beautiful morning! After many days of rain the sun is out, the birds are singing and so am I. The song "Grace Like Rain" is stuck in my head partly because Nathaniel is learning to play it on his guitar and mostly because I just love it.
Minnie our black calico is sitting here contentedly purrrring while watching me type and I can hear the sound of our baby chicks coming up from the coop. I'm sure they can't wait to be set loose!
We've spent a lot of time in our adult Sunday class talking about what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ and what would a true disciple of Christ look like? Well I can tell you that a true disciple of our Lord would have the fruit of the Spirit pouring from their life, dripping with sweet goodness and planting more seed to bear fruit! What are those fruits you may ask???
The Word tells us in Galatians 5:22
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
The Word also warns us in Galatians 5:19 that...
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry,
sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
As Christians we know we are in a spiritual fight with the powers of darkness daily and that we will need to come before the Lord often and confess our sins in order to be a cleansed vessel for the Lord's use.
As a helpmeet to my husband, purposing to live the biblical role God created for me; I often think it is so much easier in many ways for me to keep my eyes focused on the Lord. For the most part I can pick and choose what kind of influences I will be around and the children will be around. My husband on the other hand has to make a stand in a much more worldly place as he goes out into the world to support his family. Ladies do you cover your husbands daily in prayer? I do and I know God blesses it. On the other hand I sometimes buy into the destructive thought that because I do live a "more sheltered" life, my opportunity to do "big things" for God are not as numerous as they would be out in the world. God dealt with me on that and I am thankful for it!
Scripture tells us in 1 Peter 3:7 that women we are to be protected as the weaker vessel
7 You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
I have learned that where God wants me bearing fruit is ministering to other women and children.
Scripture also tells women in Titus 2 ...
3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
4That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
5To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.
There's my "job" description!!! Is that your job description? Should it be your job description? If you not walking the path the Lord created for you as a woman, please pray about that... aren't we always at our best when walking in the truth of our Lord.?! Let men be men, we have God given work to do as women.
I know that this statement will make every woman who has even the tiniest bit of feminism in them cringe but it's my blog and I can say it here...
If women would be the women God created them to be, and let men be the men that God created them to be, Satan wouldn't have the "door wide open" access to our families in this world that he has. I truly believe its the "mudding up" of our biblical roles that's been Satan's mightiest tool against human kind and specifically the family. Think about it... if he can destroy or confuse the basic family structure everything else goes like dominoes.
Back to my original point... Ladies where can you plant the most potent of seeds to bare fruit for the Lord? I really feel scripture clearly points us to our own homes first, and then helping mentor other women likewise.
When I think about all my dear friends, godly women, walking in the truth of our Lord... standing up for what's right in the face of the world and quietly, humbly being helpmeets to their husbands, keepers of their homes and making a difference... my heart SMILES and I know the Lord's does too.
Sherri
