An Intentional Prayer Life

By: Grace Metzger 

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 

Colossians 4:2

Recently I saw a TikTok about a movie I saw years ago and it prompted me to try to rewatch. The War Room was an amazing movie about building a strong prayer life and watching it would change your life. I love the movie, but every time I watch it I start to think, is my prayer life as strong as it should be?

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
 With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Ephesians 6:18

Sure, I pray for my meals, I pray at church, and I even pray when I see an accident on the road. But am I truly praying on all occasions? Am I lifting my requests to God or am I simply doing this out of habit? Doing things in my walk with God out of habit is probably one of my biggest struggles. I grew up in a very Christian household, with parents who taught me to pray for every meal. It's not even something I have to think about. But what ends up happening to me is I get into a habit and I never actually use my prayers to grow my relationship with God. I'm not praying for Him to help me with my struggles, I'm not praying in thanksgiving. I am simply praying because it's something that I'm supposed to be doing.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition,

with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which

 transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

There are more benefits to prayer then I can even list off. I challenged myself the last few weeks to spend time in intentional prayer with God, even if it's a five minutes while I'm driving to work. I noticed a big difference in my life from just that, from being more patient to feeling more peace. The effects it's had on my life have been big! 

I challenge you this week to spend some intentional time with God, start with five minutes a day. If you can spend hours on social media then I know you can find five minutes a day to spend in prayer. But spend a week in prayer and then come back to take note of what effects you're seeing from it. Has it changed the way you're approaching issues? Are you in a more peaceful mindset? Have any of your needs or the needs of those you prayed about been answered? Whatever the change might be, take a note of what changes you see and how it can improve your life!

Discussion Question:

What has helped in your prayer life in the past?

29 Things I've Learned About Marriage in 29 Years of Marriage

By: Jenifer Metzger

Today my husband and I celebrate our 29th wedding anniversary. 29 years. Wow! In some ways it feels like it has been forever, as though he has literally been in my life forever. In other ways I cannot believe it has already been 29 years.

Has it been an easy 29 years? Absolutely not. Marriage is like a roller coaster, there are many ups and many downs. But there are a few things I have learned in 29 years of being a wife.

29 things I've learned about marriage in 29 years of marriage, in no particular order:

1. Make a commitment now that divorce is never an option. (This is not the case if abuse is happening. If you are in an abusive relationship, seek help from a pastor or trusted friend immediately.)

2. Be a good listener. When talking with your husband, pause what you are doing and give your husband your full attention. Put your phone down, put your book down, pause your TV, pause your game, if it can wait, make it wait and give him eye contact.

3. Be a forgiver. Your marriage will absolutely not survive without forgiveness.

4. Be a helper. No matter who works where or who stays home, you can both be helpers. My husband works and I stay home. Yet, he helps with the dishes and picks up the house when needed, and I always make sure his work clothes are ready and pack his lunch. We have our roles but we help each other.

5. Pray for your spouse and marriage. Pray for his health, mind, emotions, relationships, job, ministries, anything and everything. Pray over your marriage, for forgiveness, kindness, love, time together, again, anything and everything.

6. Pray together. There is power in standing face to face and praying together with your spouse.

7. Be kind. We tend to let the weight of the world drag us down and our husband gets the worst of us. We are tired from work or dealing with the kids, and our frustration spills onto our husband. We need to be intentional with being kind.

8. Never, ever bad mouth your husband to anyone, including your parents or best friend. Never join in on husband bashing, ever. No matter how upset you may be with him, don't bad mouth him.

9. Talk good about him to others. You can make his name great.

10. Be interested in your husband's interests. My husband collects sports cards. I do not. Yet, I go to sports cards shows with him, when he buys and sells cards I look closely at them, and I've learned some of the terminology of the card world. I quickly realized that taking an interest in his cards means a lot to him.

11. Be his biggest cheerleader. No one will cheer your husband on like you can. Celebrate his wins, reward his accomplishments.

12. Even if you are uncomfortable with your body, he loves it so let him look at it. God made men visual and your body is the only one he can Biblically look at, so let him look.

13. Never deprive him of sex. Sexual intimacy in marriage is a must. (1 Corinthians 7:5)

14. Date each other. Dating helps keep your marriage alive. It helps you remember why you married in the first place. It helps remind you that you are more than just dad and mom or roommates. Date weekly if you can, or maybe monthly works better for you. Whatever it is, just date.

15. Go away together. My husband and I only took one weekend trip alone when our kids were growing up and it was wonderful. Once our kids were grown, we took a week long trip together and realized it was something we should have been doing all along. That time away helps you really shut out the world and focus on each other. Maybe you can take a trip every year, maybe every other year works better for you, but take the trip!

16. Never stop getting to know each other. As we age, we change, we evolve. My husband is not the same man at 48 that he was at 19, and I am not the same woman at 46 that I was at 17. We have different interests, different habits. We have to continually get to know each other.

16. Spend a little time each day talking to each other. Life keeps us busy. It can be easy to go all day long and not even connect with each other. Be intentional about talking each day. 

17. Hug him. Every day hug your husband. That physical contact does so much mentally and emotionally.

18. Kiss him. A kiss brings intimacy and connection. Kiss him. Not a quick peck and run, really kiss him.

19. Tell him you love him and why. He needs to know that you love him, but he really needs to know why you love him.

20. Respect him. Even if you do not agree with him, respect him.

21. Show your appreciation. Tell him "thank you" often. Thank you for working hard for our family. Thank you for being present tonight. Thank you for washing the dishes. Thank you for running that errand for me.

22. Take care of yourself. Especially during those years of raising little ones it can be hard to care for ourselves. We get so busy taking care of everyone else that it is easy to forget ourselves. Take care of yourself.

23. Do things your husband likes. My husband really loves when I wear sundresses, so I try to wear sundresses often for him. If he likes when you wear red lipstick, wear it sometimes. If he likes when you light a candle in the bedroom, light it. Try to do things he likes often.

24. Give him space to rest. Sometimes we expect our husband to go, go, go. But he needs rest. Yes, we need rest too, but we often just expect our husband to not need rest. Especially after work, give him space to rest.

25. Greet him at the door. When your husband gets home, whether from work or play, greet him at the door. Let him know you are glad he's home.

26. Laugh together. Life doesn't have to be all serious. Do things that make you laugh together. Watch a show you both enjoy that makes you laugh, play a game, whatever it is just laugh together.

27. Tell him what's wrong. Women are famous for saying, "I'm fine" even when we aren't. And we do this for several reasons. But the truth is, holding it in gets us nowhere. When something is bothering you, tell him. Be gentle and loving about it, but share.

28. Keep your eyes and heart only for him. Never let your eyes wander in any other direction. Never let your heart flutter at anyone other than your husband.

29. Spend time with God. This is for you, but it's also for your marriage. Spend time with God daily. Be in the Word and pray. Your marriage needs it as much as you do.

These 29 things are not all things I've mastered. But they are things I've come to know are true and work hard at. Marriage isn't always easy, but it is a blessing.

To my Jeremy, I love you so deeply and I am so thankful for you. Always & forever.

Discussion:
1. Which of these are ones you need to work on?
2. What are some lessons you've learned in your own marriage?

Fruits of the Spirit Series: Kindness

 By: Rebekah Hargraves

Photo Courtesy of:  Adam Nemeroff

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness...." ~Galatians 5:22a

In our series on the fruits of the Spirit, we come this week to the fruit of kindness. This is another area, just as we saw last week when talking about patience, where Paul overlaps some of his teachings and includes a fruit of the Spirit in his description of what love is in 1 Corinthians 13 - "Love is patient and kind" (1 Corinthians 13:4a).

We hear a lot about things like niceness and kindness in our day and age, and our culture is quick to define these characteristics in a way that doesn't enable us to both 1) disagree with someone else or to disapprove of their life choices and 2) still be described as being nice or kind. We are told that disagreement or disapproval = hatred. But this simply is not the case.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are professing Christians out there who will say that the nicest or kindest thing you can do is point out someone's sin, and will do so as a way to excuse their nasty behavior when pointing out someone's sin. They will refer to the topic of "speaking the truth in love", but forget to add in the love part while speaking the truth. This is wrong, as well.

The Greek word translated "kind" in 1 Corinthians 13:4 is "chrēsteuomai", the definition of which is "to show one's self mild, to be kind, use kindness". The Greek word translated as "kindness" in Galatians 5:22 is "chrēstotēs", the definition of which is "moral goodness, integrity, benignity, kindness", and elsewhere in Scripture is translated "gentleness" 

So, what do we take from this? We see that Biblical kindness as we are called to is gentle, mild, benign, and good. This is all important for a number of reasons, not the lest of which being that it corrects both wrongs and extremes I mentioned above.

On the one hand, kindness is moral goodness. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that love is both kind and also does not rejoice in wrongdoing. So, it is not kind to support someone's ongoing, unrepentant sin. That sin is not in their best interests, so the kind thing to do for that person is to gently and humbly address it with them and help them to find the answer to their struggle and their eternal need for Christ. 

But also note that kindness is also mild mannered, benign, and gentle. Kindness does not look like beating someone over the head for their sin. Far from it! It looks like being long-suffering with people, humbly acknowledging our own sin struggles, and gently interacting with them.

Kindness is also not the same thing as niceness, either, for to remain "nice" can sometimes mean sweeping things under the rug, not having the hard conversation or needed confrontation, or refusing to speak honestly for fear of not being viewed as "nice". Niceness can look like being a peacekeeper, but kindness looks like being a peacemaker - and there is a world of difference between the two! "Niceness" can look like the deceptive "approval" of an enemy as talked about in Proverbs, while kindness is open, honest, and true.

In a world wherein the true definition and meaning of words can get twisted so very quickly, it is important for us to know God's definition of them. And this is certainly true in the area of the fruit of the Spirit known as kindness!

Reflection Questions:

1) What stood out to you about today's study?

2) Do you tend to operate from the Bible's definition of kindness or from the world's definition?

3) What needs to change in your kindness (or lack thereof!) towards others? How can you lean on Christ and the Spirit to help you with that?

Those Sleepless Nights

 By: Joanne Viola

 

Watching impressionable programs, or the late evening news, is never a wise choice for me. Either of those can work on my mind causing difficulty falling asleep, a restless night’s sleep, or nightmares.

Opening my Bible one morning, I read the heading on a psalm – “A morning psalm.”

David wrote this particular psalm as he was fleeing from his son, Absalom, who was after his life.

And therein, was the remedy for those sleepless nights:

• Perspective. We need to shift our perspective. It is exactly what David does. He moves his thoughts from his circumstances to the One able to help Him.

“Salvation belongs to the Lord; Your blessing be upon Your people!” 
(Psalm 3:8, NASB)

• Protection. We must remember the One who is our protection.

“But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head.” 
(Psalm 3:3, NASB)

• Peace. With a perspective change, and remembering who is the One protecting us, His peace comes, and so does sleep.

“I lay down and slept, I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.” 
(Psalm 3:5, NASB)

There is a reason this psalm has the heading – “A morning psalm”.

As we come to the Lord in prayer each morning,
we are able to gain renewed peace
as we align our perspective with God’s truth.

 

Reflection: 

How do you change your perspective when your circumstances are challenging?

 

Image by Tyli Jura from Pixabay

 

Don't Give Up, Use Your Lifeline

By: Jenifer Metzger

I have a game on my phone that I love to play. It's one of these games where you match certain items to level up. You get five lives to play. If you win the level, you move up. If you lose the level, you lose a life; after losing five lives, you have to wait to get more lives. One time I was playing on my last life, I only had a couple moves left and I was about to lose. I have been stuck on this level for a week and was tired of playing it. Knowing I couldn't beat the level, I was about to just give up. Then I noticed I had a lifeline. I could 'clear a row' which would get me much closer to winning. I decided to use my lifeline. I won-finally.

We live life the same way.

We begin to struggle with a situation and we don't see a way out. We are so close to just giving up. Why live for God when everything keeps going bad? Why keep trying to save the marriage when nothing helps? Why keep trying to discipline the kids when they keep disrespecting? Why keep trying at anything when nothing ever goes right?

We often forget that we have a lifeline.

What's our lifeline? God. Instead of fighting on our own, we need to turn to God. He is right there, sitting and waiting for us to call out to Him. He wants to help. When I don't use a lifeline on my game, it is wasted. It's like a gift given to me that I set aside and never open. Friends, God is your gift given to you. Yet we set Him aside and never open the gift.

Come to Me, all of you who are weary

and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me,

because I am lowly and humble in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls. For

My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30 CSB

God gives us even another lifeline gift. This lifeline comes in the form of friends, accountability partners, mentors, and fellow Christians. It is easy to hold our problems in, think we have to deal with it on our own. Yet when we share our burdens with others, they can lift us in prayer and give encouragement. Years ago I had a dear friend who was going through a dark time, yet never shared with anyone. Then one day, what seemed to me, out of the blue, she left her husband. Come to find out, there had been horrible issues going on for many years. Had they shared their burden, their Christian family could have been praying for them and helping them.

Carry one another’s burdens; in this

way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2 CSB

What are you facing today? Do you feel like you are losing? Do you feel ready to just give up? Use your lifelines! Turn to God. Give Him your burdens and ask for His help. Then, go to your mentor or accountability partner. Share your burden and ask for prayer on your behalf. Don't let your lifelines sit there unused.

Discussion:
1. Think of a situation you have faced. Did you use your lifeline, God? Did you turn to Him or try to face it on  your own?
2. When you face situations in life, do you make it a practice to reach out to a trusted friend or mentor? If not, what keeps you from seeking counsel? If so, how has it helped you?

Fruits of the Spirit Series: Patience

 By: Rebekah Hargraves

Photo courtesy of: Osama Saeed

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience...." 

~Galatians 5:22

As we return again this week to our ongoing series on the fruits of the Spirit, the timing of  patience being our fruit to study today is not lost on me. I see the Lord in it because I don't know about you, but I could certainly use some patience right about now! 

Some of you may know that I have an 8 month old baby at the time of this writing, but what you may not know is just what a struggle sleep has been for her the past several months. Not only that, but just when I think we have made a breakthrough in being able to get her to sleep for several hours in a row at night, she randomly has a night like she did just last night where she is up every hour and unpredictable as to how easy or quick it'll be to get her back to sleep.

And while, when I was pregnant, I naively assumed, because she was our miracle baby who had come at the end of a years-long struggle of secondary infertility, that I would never get impatient or frustrated with her, that simply is not the case. I wish I could say it was. But with my sin nature being what it is, I suppose I should have known better. I'm a sinner just like everyone else, and when dealing with sleep deprivation at 3am with no end in sight, patience can often be the last thing I have - if I'm operating in my own strength, that is.

Because that is the reality we have seen over and over throughout the first weeks of this series, right? We have revisited this important topic week after week, that what we are studying right now are the fruits of the Spirit, meaning that He is the One Who cultivates them in us, and we only have them as we walk by His Spirit. 

So, on my own, in my flesh, at 3am when my 8 month old is up yet again? Instant impatience can  easily kick in. 

But when I am operating in the Spirit? He enables me to have patience that is humanly impossible. Praise God for that! 

One thing that I find interesting is that many translations of Galatians 5:22 do not actually use the word "patience". They instead use the word "long-suffering". My sleep-deprived self finds that both fascinating as well as rather convicting, if I'm being honest! Because I feel like I am suffering when I am operating on 3 or 4 hours of sleep. But that is exactly what I am called to - to be long-suffering.

Paul uses the verb version of the same Greek word again in 1 Corinthians 13:4, when describing what love is - "Love is patient" or "love suffers long", depending on your translation.

This Greek word is "makrothymeō", the definition of which is as follows:

1. to be of a long spirit, not to lose heart

   1. to persevere patiently and bravely in enduring misfortunes and troubles

   2. to be patient in bearing the offenses and injuries of others

      1. to be mild and slow in avenging

      2. 
         

   3. to be longsuffering, slow to anger, slow to punish

      
      

      
      

      
      

      This is all rather convicting to me, coming on the heels of how I behaved last night when being repeatedly awakened. I did not persevere patiently, was not slow to anger and frustration, and did not patiently bear the repeated awakenings. But this reminder about this fruit of the Spirit is important for me to hear myself, for this long-suffering patience is what I am called to as a Christ-follower. It is not humanly possible, but with Christ, all things are possible. I can't conjure it up on my own, but as I commit to walking by the Spirit and leading and relying on Him, I will begin to see this fruit of patience come through in my daily living more and more - and more than I never thought possible! 

      
      

      
      

      And the same encouraging truth will be reality for you, as well, dear sister! Lean on Him, and He will help you through. 

      
      

      
      

      
      

      
      

      
      

      
      

Reflection Questions:

1) In what area of your life are you sorely in need of patience?

2) What stands out to you about today's devotional?

3) How can it encourage your heart to know that your becoming a more patient person is not reliant upon you yourself? Will you make it your aim to walk by the Spirit and seek His help in this area?

They're Worth More

 By: Joanne Viola

 

The photos are already appearing as kids of varied ages resume their school routines. Children may be starting daycare, grammar school, middle school, high school, or college.

The age or year of school makes no difference as mothers begin to worry about the school year ahead, and the transition it would bring.

Dropping a child off to their first year of college is equally as daunting as when you dropped them off to their first day of day care or kindergarten.

The unknowns can be terrifying. It brings to mind this often shared thought:

“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”
(Corrie ten Boom)

“Worry” as defined by dictionary.com –> “to torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts” (emphasis mine).

We do it to ourselves. And most of what we worry about never comes to be, or turns out the way we expected.

So maybe what we need to do is turn to our known God. Better yet, return to what we know about God.

We need to remember Him. Remember His faithfulness, His tender care, and the way He has guided and brought you thus far. Remember His love for our children is great. Remember He has a plan for their lives.

We need to remember our children are of great worth to our heavenly Father.

Jesus in talking to the crowds exhorted the people to not be worried about their life. He told them to look at the birds whom their heavenly Father feeds and cares for.

Then Jesus asks this powerful question:

“Are you not worth more than they?” 
(Matthew 6:26b, NASB)

Jesus then reminds the crowd:

“And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?”
 (verse 27, NASB)

All our worrying won’t change a thing. The only result of worrying is it successfully distracts us from the One who cares for us.

Jesus not only tells us not to worry but He then tells us why we should not worry … “Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things” (verse 32b). Jesus knows our needs. He tells us not to worry because our heavenly Father has them covered.

As our kids return to school,
let’s remember
to trust this unknown future to Him.

 

 

Reflection: 
Does the start of another school year fill your thoughts with worry or fear? What do you need to do to stay focused on God and thus, worry less?

 

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

 

 

 

Learning to Trust

 By: Grace Metzger 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
 And lean not on your own understanding.
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

My coworker and I like to joke about how I’m such a distrustful person. At my job it’s very easy to get in trouble or even fired from a single mistake. I’ve seen it happen plenty of times in the past so I’ve become extremely cautious over everything I do.  However this joke started getting to my head, have I really become so independent that I don’t trust anyone? Has this happened in my relationship with God?

Whenever I am afraid,
 I will trust in You.
Psalms‬ ‭56‬:‭3‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

I’ve thought about my current situation, the troubles I’m experiencing in my life right now. Was I trusting God through this? Was I believing that He had control over it? Sadly, I don’t think I can confidently say that I had total trust in God. Instead, I was allowing my anxiety to control my thoughts. 

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication,
 with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

As I was thinking about this, I thought about this verse in Philippians. I remember learning this verse as a child and repeating it over and over again whenever my anxiety rose. I love this verse so much because shows that God understands us. He knows that we have a habit of allowing anxiety to control us so He used His word to give us instructions on how to trust Him. 

We need to give it to Him in prayer. When we pray, we are relinquishing control and fears over our problems and giving them to God. I’ve noticed a change when I pray over the storms in my life and stop thinking about it. When fear tries to take control I remind myself I already gave it to God. It’s no longer mine to fear, if it’s not my problem then why do I worry over it? 

Discussion Questions: What helps you when you're lacking in trust and faith?

Back to School Prayer

By: Jenifer Metzger

All over the world students and faculty will be heading back to school in the coming days. This year my oldest grandchild begins school and I am so excited for him!

I'd like to invite you to join me in praying over children, teens, and young adults students, as well as all those who work in the school system in any capacity and homeschool families.

Dear Heavenly Father,

We thank you for those headed back to school. Our children heading to elementary school, preteens heading to middle school, teens heading to high school, young adults heading off to college, those who work in the school system, and homeschool families. They all matter and we are thankful for each and every one.

We ask You right now for your hedge of protection to be around all of them. Keep Your guardian angels encamped around them and allow no harm to come to them. Stop any plans the enemy has for harm. Protect them physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I pray, Lord, for students of all ages. As they learn, help them to retain. When things get hard, give them the strength and desire to press on. Let this be a successful year as they learn and grow.

I pray for those who work in the schools. As they prepare lessons, organize events, clean buildings, or whatever they may be called to do, give them wisdom. Help them to be gentle and patient with those they are teaching or guiding. Allow them to get good sleep at night and wake each morning ready for a new day.

Lord, help all those heading into the schools -children and adults alike- to be includers. Help them to reach out to the friendless and be a friend. Help them to stand up for the one who is different. Help them to always have a smile ready to show and a kind word ready to speak.

I pray for the homeschool mamas who work just as hard as those in the brick and mortar buildings. As they care for their families and homes, do the chores, and teach their children, strengthen them. Sustain them. Help them to find their support village and be a support for others.

And last, we pray for the believers heading to school. Help them to boldly stand up for You. Unashamed and ready to share the Gospel of Jesus. Help them not to waiver in their faith but to stand with feet firmly planted in You.

We pray all of this in Jesus name, amen.

Fruits of the Spirit Series: Peace

 By: Rebekah Hargraves

Photo Courtesy of: Sunguk Kim

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace...."

~Galatians 5:22a

In our series on the fruits of the Spirit, we come now to the fruit of peace. 

This is one of the fruits that can sometimes seem especially hard to possess in times like these when there seems to be an exceptional lack of peace everywhere we turn. From national strife between countries to personal discord between people who think differently or live differently from one another, peace can oftentimes feel like the last thing we could ever hope to find or possess.

But, as with the other fruits we are studying throughout this series together, that is the whole point, isn't it? So often is seems impossible to possess or to cultivate these fruits because, humanly speaking, it is! They are the fruits of the Spirit, not of us, and He is the One Who must cultivate them in us as we walk with Him.

One of my husband's favorite hymns is "It is Well with my Soul", a hymn that has accompanied him especially throughout his military career, from the first hard days of basic training to the challenging days of a deployment during Covid. If you aren't familiar with the story behind the hymn, it is an incredibly powerful one. The hymn-writer, Horatio Spafford, lost his four daughters in 1873 when the ship they were sailing on with their mother sank. Their mother alone survived, and when Horatio traveled to meet with his grieving wife after the accident, he penned the hymn's lyrics right as he was passing near the site of the tragedy.

Can you imagine?

I used to not be able to. How could he say it was well with his soul? As a mother, I couldn't fathom it. Except for this fact: saying it is well with your soul is not the same as saying it is well with your circumstances. It is not the same as saying that all is going well in your life, that your life is free from tragedy, hardship, and pain. It is saying that all is well with your soul - it is saying that you have an inner peace and calmness of spirit because you know that your soul is eternally safe and cared for by your Savior and heaven is what is awaiting you. 

And that is how we can have peace no matter what this life or this culture or this time in history throw at us. Which brings me to one of my favorite passages of Scripture, Philippians 4:6-7:

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." 

Paul readily admits here that this kind of peace defies and surpasses all human understanding. Humanly, it just doesn't make sense. But that is because it is a supernatural peace from a supernatural God. 

We see this clearly in the definition of the Greek word that is translated as "peace" in both Galatians 5 and Philippians 4. It is the Greek word, eirēnē, a couple of the definitions of which are as follows:

• security, safety, prosperity, felicity
• the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is
• peace, quietness, rest

Isn't that beautiful? Our inheritance as daughters of God, as followers of Christ, is that we get to experience a deep-seated inner quietness, rest, peace, harmony, and felicity that can be ours no matter what, for it defies human logic. No matter what may come our way, no matter what our lot in life, the peace of the Spirit is ours for the taking, for it is eternally well with our souls.

Reflection Questions:

1)  What stood out to you from today's study?

2) In what are of your life are you lacking peace right now? How can you walk by the Spirit in that area and watch Him cultivate peace in your life?

3) How can you encourage someone else with what you have learned today?

God Stoops to See Us

 By: Joanne Viola

 

It is good at times to switch up our Bible reading so that familiarity does not keep us from discovering something new.

We need to have our memories jogged every now and then. We need to remember who our God is and how He interacts with us.

“For the Lord is high above the nations; his glory is higher than the heavens. 
Who can be compared with the Lord our God, who is enthroned on high? 
He stoops to look down on heaven and on earth.” 
(Psalm 113:4-6, NLT)

Our God is great, is exalted above the heavens, and sits enthroned on high. Yet He stoops down to us!

God sees us and draws near to us in our distress. Can you see the picture Scripture is depicting for us? Like a loving parent who squats to speak face to face with a child, to hear a child, to comfort a child. This is the very action of our God towards us – He stoops down to us.

“Stooping” according to dictionary.com means “to bend the head and shoulders, or the body generally, forward and downward from an erect position; to descend from one’s level of dignity.”

The psalmist goes on to tell us who it is God stoops to help:

“He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump.” 
(verse 7, NLT)

• The poor, to raise them from the dust. What is making you poor today? Where is your deficit? We may have a financial need but more so, we can also be spiritually bankrupt.
  
• The needy, to raise them from the ash heap. What has left you feeling rejected? Sent to the rubbish heap? Devoid of hope.

God is reaching down towards us to help us in our situations. He stoops in order to raise us up. He settles the barren, those who feel without significance, without joy, or without hope, into places where their lives will be productive and bring forth fruit.

Our mighty God stoops
to raise us up so that we come to know Him better
and our hearts are filled with praise.

 

 

Reflection: 
Take time today to identify your need and bring it to God in prayer. May you remember He is always with you, nearer than you realize, and waiting to raise you up.

 

Image by Tyli Jura from Pixabay

 

 

 

Sharing God's Love

 By: Grace Metzger

How, then, can they call on the one
they have not believed in? And how can they
believe in the one of whom they have not
heard? And how can they hear without
someone preaching to them?

Romans 10:14 NIV

Recently, I had dinner with some old friends who I have been close to for years. I’ve known a lot of details about these friends-from their dating lives, their families situation, etc. I’ve always felt comfortable enough to talk to them about most things, but through this dinner, I realize there’s one thing that we’ve never really discussed. We’ve never talked too much about religion. During the dinner, one of them brought up how she’s been getting into the Word more. She’s going to church, reading the Bible, doing her devotional, and overall is getting closer to God. I felt so excited for her.  But I also felt a tiny bit of shame. I’ve known her for years and I’ve never brought up God to her. I couldn’t help but thinking what if I just talked about God years ago, would she have started living for God much earlier? How different would her life have been if I did what God called us to do and shared the Good News.

Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story,

those He redeemed from the hand of the foe.

Psalms 107:2 NIV

God calls us to share our testimony with everyone in our life. Does that mean that every single person we speak to will be saved? Maybe not, but it does mean that in our daily we are planting seeds of God. How are we showing God to the people we come across? How are we telling the stories of how God redeemed us from the hand of our foe? 

Because we loved you so much, we
were delighted to share with you not only the
Gospel of God but our lives as well.
1 Thessalonians 2:8 NIV

We need to share God's love because we love others. I wish I shared my testimony with my friends, I wish I told them more about the joy and peace God has given me. I missed my chance in the past but I refuse to miss any future chances. I challenge you this morning to think about the people you come across in your daily life. How have you shared the gospel with them?  Spend time this week in prayer, asking God to show you how to share your testimony with them.

Discussion Question! 

What do you think keeps people from sharing God's love?

Teaching Our Daughters to Be Strong Women

By: Jenifer Metzger

This world tells us to raise strong daughters, and we know that it is our job to raise strong daughters. We have our girls -whether our own daughters, nieces, granddaughters, little sisters, or any girl we have influence over- for a short time. In fact, we only have 6,570 days from birth to their 18th birthday. We only have 936 weeks from birth to their 18th birthday. We only have 18 summers. The days of our influence are short so we need to take this task of teaching our girls to be strong women serious and get busy.

To teach our girls to be strong women, we first need to understand what it means to be a strong woman.

The world will tell us that to teach our girls to be strong women, we need to teach them to be independent, never show weakness, take care of themselves, walk away from those who hurt them, work hard, play harder, and make self care a priority.

While some of the world's views are valid, some are a bit off.

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to love themselves. Our girls need to understand that they were created in the very image of God Himself and they are beautiful and they have worth.

So God created man in His own image;

He created him in the image of God;

He created them male and female.

Genesis 1:27 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to be dependent on God. We need to teach them to trust in Him and His ways.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and do not rely on your own understanding.

Proverbs 3:5 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls that there is strength in our weakness. We don't have to handle everything on our own.

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient
for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.”
Therefore I will most gladly boast all the more
about my weakness, so that Christ's power may

reside in me.

2 Corinthians 12:9 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to forgive others. They need to know that Christ forgives us so we should never withhold forgiveness to others.

Bearing with one another and forgiving one another

if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the

Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive.

Colossians 3:13 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls that we were not called to do this life alone. They need to find their tribe of sisters and cultivate those relationships.

Iron sharpens iron, and

one person sharpens another.

Proverbs 27:17 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to work hard. Not only work hard, but work as though every single thing we are doing for God Himself.

Whatever you do, do it from

the heart, as something done

for the Lord and not for people.

Colossians 3:23 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to take care of themselves. We need to do this by teaching them that they are the temple of God.

Don’t you yourselves know that you are God’s

temple and that the Spirit of God lives in you?

1 Corinthians 3:16 CSB

To be truly strong, we need to teach our girls to make Bible reading a priority. We must teach them so they know how to read the Bible and pray.

This book of instruction must not depart

from your mouth; you are to meditate on

it day and night so that you may carefully

observe everything written in it. For then

you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do.

Joshua 1:8 CSB

When we teach our girls these principles, we are training them to be strong women. However, we need to do more than tell them, we need to be an example. Let your girl see you forgive others, talk positive about yourself, read your Bible regularly, pray, and more. Let her see an example of a strong, Godly woman when she sees you. And if you feel you haven't been that example in her life, start now.

P.S. These principals will teach your boys how to be strong men too...

Discussion:
1. Who was/is your example of a strong, Godly woman?
2. What other ways can you think of to be an example and teach your girl to be a strong, Godly woman?

Fruits of the Spirit Series: Joy

 By: Rebekah Hargraves

Photo Courtesy of: Sasha Freemind

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness," ~Galatians 5:22

As we enter now into our third week in our fruits of the Spirit series, we come to the fruit of the Spirit known as joy. 

Because we live in a sin-cursed world, it can sometimes feel (especially in certain darker seasons of our lives!) impossible to have joy. How are we to be expected to have this fruit of the Spirit in our lives when life is hard and our world feels dark? 

Well, that is where there are a couple of key things to remember here.

The first is that as we saw on week 1 of our study, not one of these fruits is cultivated or produced by us - they are fruits of *the Spirit*, and Paul shows us in Galatians 5:16 that the key to having the Spirit produce these fruits in our lives is us walking by the Spirit, daily being in relationship with Him through the Word, prayer, etc. No matter our circumstances, it truly can be well with our souls, and the Spirit can cultivate and produce in us a supernatural joy in spite of our circumstances, a joy that surpasses all human understanding. 

The other thing to keep in mind is that there is a difference between happiness and joy. Happiness oftentimes is a circumstances-based feeling, a feeling that can be flaky and can come and go all too quickly based on what is happening in our lives. Joy, meanwhile, is a deep-seated peace, lightness, and positivity in our souls, in the core of who we are, because we know Who holds the future and our lives securely in His hands. 

When we know that, we truly can have joy and, as Nehemiah said, that joy of the Lord can be our strength (see Nehemiah 8:10).

The Greek word translated in Galatians 5 as "joy" here is "chara" and refers to a calmness, a delight, a cheerfulness of soul. May that joy be yours today and every day, dear sister! 

Reflection Questions: 

1) How does this definition of joy perhaps differ from the definition you had previously?

2) How can you take joy even in the midst of hard seasons of life?

3) How has the Lord brought you joy in dark seasons? How can you encourage someone else with your story?