Monday, February 21, 2011

Where Is Your Confidence?

This morning I woke up feeling bad for several choices I made yesterday. My confidence was shaken AGAIN. Sometimes I feel like I live on this confidence roller coaster. One day I am up, the next I am down. Do you ever feel this way?

Well, this morning as I was thinking about my confidence, I realized that I had it all wrong. My confidence is not supposed to be in me, but in God. Jeremiah 17:7 says, "But blessed are those who trust in the Lord, and have made the Lord their hope and confidence." What a relief! The world has it backwards. Parents try to teach their little children to have self-confidence. But this is not right. We need to teach them to have confidence in God. If we put our hope and confidence in Him, and not in ourselves, the Bible says we will be blessed!

Now, having confidence in ourselves is not the same thing as valuing ourselves. We must remember that we are of great value. Value to who? To God. He valued us so much that He sent Jesus to remind us of our worth and value. Jesus demonstrated our value as He taught and healed people and demonstrated God's love. Jesus also demonstrated our value when He gave His life for ours. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life."


More scriptures to think on:

2 Corinthians 3:4 "Such confidence we have through Christ toward God."
Ephesians 3:12 "..in whom we have boldness and access in confidence through our faith in Him."
Matthew 10:31 "Therefore don't be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows."
Matthew 13:46 "and having found one pearl of great value, he went and sold all whatever he had and bought it."

Saturday, February 19, 2011

MYOB-Mind Your Own Business



Jesus replied, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow me."-John 21:22 (NLT)



MYOB. This is a 21st century anacronym for Mind Your Own Business. In today's society, with the advent of Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and other forms of social media, it is very easy to NOT mind your own business. I like facebook. I use it frequently, but I have to be careful or I could just sit around all day not putting first things first. Facebook, along with other media, makes it possible to know the latest info on MANY people all in an instant. However, it can also create some stress from knowing too much at once. A librarian friend of mine referred to it as "information overload."

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 Paul tells the church in Thessalonica to, "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you. Then people who are not Christians will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others."(NLT) He says that if we do these things, it will draw respect from people who are not Christians and you as a Christian will not need to depend on other people. God desires every person to come to know Jesus. Everybody. One way they will come to know him is through observation of Christians. Can they see Jesus in you from the way you live your daily life?

MYOB. Why else should you mind your own business? Jesus tells us to. In John chapter 21, Jesus is having a conversation with Peter. Jesus has just told him how he will be martyred. It doesn't even appear that Peter is paying attention to what Jesus just said. He starts asking him about John! Jesus says, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow ME." John 21:22(NIV) Jesus basically told Peter to MYOB. He was to be responsible for Peter and for Peter following Jesus.

I do want to clarify that I am not saying to never do anything for anybody else. There are numerous scriptures on helping people. It is the nature of Jesus to give. As a follower of Christ, you should be giving regularly through your time, finances, goods, and most importantly the love you demonstrate to your family and those who are close to you both in proximity and emotionally. But, it is important to not be so consumed with other's lives, that we lose our focus on what we are to be doing at the moment.

If the body of Christ started to mind their own business, what could we accomplish? Would it affect our health? Would our stress levels decrease? Would we be more productive? Would it affect the outcome of other people's lives, if we minded our own business and only followed Jesus? How will minding your own business help you today?

Friday, February 11, 2011

Sisterchicks Say Ooh La La!



Set in Paris, France, the city of love, Sisterchicks Say Ooh La La! definitely gets down to the heart of things. Written by Robin Jones Gunn, Sisterchicks Say Ooh La La! is one in a series of novels for women that will take you on an adventure emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Follow the Father heart of God as you travel along with Lisa and Amy on their sisterchicks adventure through Paris.

You can read the rest of my book review here at Wives of Faith.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Six Ways to Keep the "Little" in Your Girl




“Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older they will not leave it.”-Proverbs 22:6

I have daughters. One of my key responsibilities and joys in this life is to train them up in the way they should go. I am always seeking to increase my wisdom and knowledge as a parent. Six Ways to Keep the Little in Your Girl written by author Dannah Gresh is a book that I believe will help me to achieve that admonition from the Lord.

Written for moms of girls who are in their tween years, Six Ways will help you gain insight into Biblical principles and teach you how to apply that knowledge in practical ways.

To read more of this book review of Six Ways to Keep the "Little" in Your Girl, come on over to Wives of Faith.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

The Ultimate DVD Read and Share Bible, Volume Two


The Ultimate DVD Read and Share Bible, Volume Two is an excellent resource for parents of small children. Based upon the International Children’s Bible, the Read and Share Bible is paraphrased in such a way that children can understand and will be engaged. Included in this children’s Bible are 100 Bible stories including the stories of Joseph, Moses, Solomon, Elijah, Jonah, and most importantly Jesus. Two DVDs also accompany this Bible. On each DVD you will find brief stories to give your child another visual experience while they are learning these important foundational stories of the Bible.

When I first received this children’s Bible, I was a little unsure about it. I was not very fond of the illustrations at first. But as I spent some time and looked through the pages, and watched the DVDs with my children, it grew on me. The stories are paraphrased in a very engaging way. At the end of each story, there is either a statement or question to help the child reflect on what he/she has just read. This is also helpful to the parent if they are unsure in what way to guide or discuss the story with their child. Each of the stories on the DVD is very brief, but very powerful as a tool to reinforce the truths they learn while reading the stories. The teaching aspect is something that is very important to me.

I recommend this Bible to parents of small children ages 2-10. The product details from a well known bookseller indicate the reading level at ages 4-8, but I believe you can start reading the stories with your children a little earlier than that, and continue as long as their interest remains in this particular format. The Bible commends parents in Proverbs 22:6 to “Train up a child in the way in the way he should go and when he is older he will not turn from it.” This Read and Share Bible is another tool to help parents to do just that. I believe it will be a valuable tool to be shared in time together learning about the Bible as a family. I am thankful I found this Bible. I had been looking for a resource that contained only the Bible stories in video format. I believe it is extremely important to teach children the basic stories of the Bible while they are young. We all learn through stories. If you are a home school mom, a preschool teacher, a children’s church worker, this Read and Share Bible will be valuable to you as you teach the children in your life. Many Blessings!


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I review for BookSneeze®