But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi;call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”
Ruth 1:20-21
I know what it is like to feel empty; like you have lost everything and there is nothing left to give. Some of you may know that feeling as well. It's the feeling you have when you have done your best, and it's not good enough for others, or the feeling you have when your heart is broken. Some of you have felt it when things seem to be going so well and then something comes along suddenly to rock your world. This is what Ruth felt in the opening chapter of the book named for her. She left her home during a time of famine with her husband and two sons. They went to a place called Moab because they heard that there was food there. However, within years of their arrival there her husband and both of her sons died. She is left with two daughters-in-law, and one of them leaves as well. Ruth feels empty. She thinks she has nothing left, but she is wrong. What she poured into Naomi was priceless.
You may not have lost a husband or sons, but life has a way of making you feel empty at times. We may have lost positions or jobs. Some of us have lost faith or trust. Others have lost friendships or relationships, and these things have caused us to feel empty. For some, the day to day affairs of life can cause us to feel empty. Our calendars and planners show that our lives are full, but we have lost passion and zeal. Can I tell you that whatever we have lost God has placed purpose and destiny inside of us, and that makes us the total opposite of empty? We are full! Like Ruth we can feel empty, but that doesn't mean we are empty.
That is what I want to remind you of today, Dear Wife. You are full! God, Himself, has placed His Holy Spirit on the inside of you, and He wants you to "be filled with all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:19). We need to grasp this so that when we are confronted with the temptation to feel empty we can fight against it with truth. Yes, your calendars are full. Your days are full. There is a lot to do, but you are full of God and have everything you need to live this life.
You just need to remember that God is the One who fills us. This requires that we spend time in His presence and in His word allowing Him to do that. Our husbands can not fill us. Our jobs can not fill us. Our friends can not fill us. Actually, these relationships can sometimes leave us feeling empty, but we have the privilege of turning to Almighty God and allowing Him to restore our souls!
Let God fill you this week! Tell Him all of the places that you feel empty. Present them to Him and ask Him to fill them. Read His word concerning those areas. Spend time in worship, and trust that God will fill you! You have a full life, but I declare that you are a full wife!
Monday, February 26, 2018
Monday, February 19, 2018
Monday's Marriage Moment - Are You Unstable?
But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
James 1: 6 - 8
I am not the same woman John married almost 19 years ago. I don't think the same way. I don't feel the same way. I don't look at things the same way. It's okay, though, because he is not the same man I married either. We both have grown and changed. We don't get upset about the same things that might have caused us to be mad for days years ago. We have learned more. We appreciate each other more. No, we are not the same people we used to be, and that is a good thing.
Change is good, and it is really good when two people are growing together. Change can keep things fresh and exciting, but change can also cause stress and confusion. Change becomes a problem when it becomes instability. Instability is defined as "the tendency to behave in an unpredictable, changeable, or erratic manner". For example, when your spouse leaves for work you are happy and excited, but when he comes home for lunch you are angry and mean. That is instability. If you fly off the handle at the slightest thing - that's an example of instability. If one moment you love him and have pictures of the two of you all over social media and the next you are screaming for a divorce - that's instability...and it is not ok.
Men and women don't often look for the same things in a relationship, but one thing we all want is stability. We want to know that we are secure and safe, and the one place that needs to be certain is in our marriage. Our spouse needs to know that even on our worst day, we are consistent in our love and care for them. It doesn't mean we never get upset or have a bad day, but it does mean that we are so consistent that a bad day doesn't ruin our marriage.
Our society praises flexibility and change. Celebrities make and break marriages at the speed of light. The sanctity of marriage is under attack. Our marriages need to be rock solid. They need to be grounded in the word of God. That means we need to be rooted and grounded. We can't be like the one James describes in the scripture above - tossed by the wind. We can't be "till death do us part" today, and "I'm filing for a divorce" tomorrow. We need stability. God is stable. He is consistent. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. We need to adapt those qualities when it comes to our faith and our relationships. Determine this week to be consistent and stable. Choose one area of your life that needs more consistency and take a step to make it happen. You don't have to be unstable!
James 1: 6 - 8
I am not the same woman John married almost 19 years ago. I don't think the same way. I don't feel the same way. I don't look at things the same way. It's okay, though, because he is not the same man I married either. We both have grown and changed. We don't get upset about the same things that might have caused us to be mad for days years ago. We have learned more. We appreciate each other more. No, we are not the same people we used to be, and that is a good thing.
Change is good, and it is really good when two people are growing together. Change can keep things fresh and exciting, but change can also cause stress and confusion. Change becomes a problem when it becomes instability. Instability is defined as "the tendency to behave in an unpredictable, changeable, or erratic manner". For example, when your spouse leaves for work you are happy and excited, but when he comes home for lunch you are angry and mean. That is instability. If you fly off the handle at the slightest thing - that's an example of instability. If one moment you love him and have pictures of the two of you all over social media and the next you are screaming for a divorce - that's instability...and it is not ok.
Men and women don't often look for the same things in a relationship, but one thing we all want is stability. We want to know that we are secure and safe, and the one place that needs to be certain is in our marriage. Our spouse needs to know that even on our worst day, we are consistent in our love and care for them. It doesn't mean we never get upset or have a bad day, but it does mean that we are so consistent that a bad day doesn't ruin our marriage.
Our society praises flexibility and change. Celebrities make and break marriages at the speed of light. The sanctity of marriage is under attack. Our marriages need to be rock solid. They need to be grounded in the word of God. That means we need to be rooted and grounded. We can't be like the one James describes in the scripture above - tossed by the wind. We can't be "till death do us part" today, and "I'm filing for a divorce" tomorrow. We need stability. God is stable. He is consistent. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. We need to adapt those qualities when it comes to our faith and our relationships. Determine this week to be consistent and stable. Choose one area of your life that needs more consistency and take a step to make it happen. You don't have to be unstable!
Monday, February 12, 2018
Monday's Marriage Moment -- What Do You Bring to the Table?
And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him.
Genesis 2:18 - 20
Dear Wife, you have value! Can I just remind you of that? I know. You have been through a lot. You have been hurt and offended. I know you have had to live through things that would have scarred others for life, but none of that defines you. You have value. You bring something to the table. You have amazing worth, and God knew that you were just what your husband needed.
In the account of creation, we find that God created the heavens, the earth, creeping and crawling things, animals and the like, and after each creation He said, "it is good". Yet, after He created man He said "it is not good that man should be alone". God knew that man needed someone comparable to him to accomplish all that God has set forth for him to do. He needed you. That doesn't make you an accent or accessory. It makes you needed and valuable. See, you are a gift. The bible says that after He created woman from man God presented her to Adam (verse 22). He gave Eve to Adam as a gift - something that would add value and worth to His life. That's what gifts do, right?
You were designed to add value to your husband's life. That means you must have value. You bring something to the table, sweetheart! The question is what do you bring to the table? Do you bring joy and kindness to the table? Do you bring love and mercy to the table? Do you bring wisdom and strength to the table? What are you adding to the marriage that God has given you?
The anointing that God has given you is not just for church services! He wants to use your prophetic gift to grace your home! He wants to use your ability to lay hands on the sick to bring healing to your house! He wants to use the eloquence of your preaching to minister grace to your family!! Don't you dare just reserve those gifts for church services! You have the amazing ability to bring peace to confusion, orchestrate and manage the affairs of the home, ensure that schedules are in sync, and so much more! One word from a wife can create calm or chaos. You have the ability to influence your husband for good or for evil! What are you doing with that influence? Eve was designed to be a blessing, but she let her curiosity and the craftiness of the enemy to cause her to bring a curse. That can not be our story! Choose today to add value to your marriage. Refuse to be the nagging, critical wife that the world may expect. Choose instead to love your husband and be the gift that God ordained you to be!
Proverbs 12:4 says that an excellent wife is a crown! Crowns are full of jewels and precious metals that signify their worth! Be a crown and add value!
Blessings!
Genesis 2:18 - 20
Dear Wife, you have value! Can I just remind you of that? I know. You have been through a lot. You have been hurt and offended. I know you have had to live through things that would have scarred others for life, but none of that defines you. You have value. You bring something to the table. You have amazing worth, and God knew that you were just what your husband needed.
In the account of creation, we find that God created the heavens, the earth, creeping and crawling things, animals and the like, and after each creation He said, "it is good". Yet, after He created man He said "it is not good that man should be alone". God knew that man needed someone comparable to him to accomplish all that God has set forth for him to do. He needed you. That doesn't make you an accent or accessory. It makes you needed and valuable. See, you are a gift. The bible says that after He created woman from man God presented her to Adam (verse 22). He gave Eve to Adam as a gift - something that would add value and worth to His life. That's what gifts do, right?
You were designed to add value to your husband's life. That means you must have value. You bring something to the table, sweetheart! The question is what do you bring to the table? Do you bring joy and kindness to the table? Do you bring love and mercy to the table? Do you bring wisdom and strength to the table? What are you adding to the marriage that God has given you?
The anointing that God has given you is not just for church services! He wants to use your prophetic gift to grace your home! He wants to use your ability to lay hands on the sick to bring healing to your house! He wants to use the eloquence of your preaching to minister grace to your family!! Don't you dare just reserve those gifts for church services! You have the amazing ability to bring peace to confusion, orchestrate and manage the affairs of the home, ensure that schedules are in sync, and so much more! One word from a wife can create calm or chaos. You have the ability to influence your husband for good or for evil! What are you doing with that influence? Eve was designed to be a blessing, but she let her curiosity and the craftiness of the enemy to cause her to bring a curse. That can not be our story! Choose today to add value to your marriage. Refuse to be the nagging, critical wife that the world may expect. Choose instead to love your husband and be the gift that God ordained you to be!
Proverbs 12:4 says that an excellent wife is a crown! Crowns are full of jewels and precious metals that signify their worth! Be a crown and add value!
Blessings!
Monday, February 5, 2018
Monday's Marriage Moment -- Are You Just Making Noise?
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:1-3
"Charity begins at home" is a phrase that many of us have heard over the years. Though it is not found in the bible explicitly, I think the principle is found throughout scripture. The word for charity in the bible is translated love, and God talks about loving our spouse, loving our children, and taking care of home from Genesis to Revelation. I think we can all agree that love is foundational, and it certainly needs to be shown to those whom we live with on a daily basis.
Sadly, I think we have missed the mark in this area. We focus on gifts. We focus on talents. We focus on appearances. We focus on social interactions. We focus on what happens outside of the home instead of building a sure foundation at home. We focus on so much, but we are missing out on the main thing - love. We have to get back to loving like Christ loves us! He wants marriage to be an example of His love, and it is up to us to live up to this challenge. Look at a few examples of His love toward those that we might have cut off, condemned, and crucified:
1 Corinthians 13:1-3
"Charity begins at home" is a phrase that many of us have heard over the years. Though it is not found in the bible explicitly, I think the principle is found throughout scripture. The word for charity in the bible is translated love, and God talks about loving our spouse, loving our children, and taking care of home from Genesis to Revelation. I think we can all agree that love is foundational, and it certainly needs to be shown to those whom we live with on a daily basis.
Sadly, I think we have missed the mark in this area. We focus on gifts. We focus on talents. We focus on appearances. We focus on social interactions. We focus on what happens outside of the home instead of building a sure foundation at home. We focus on so much, but we are missing out on the main thing - love. We have to get back to loving like Christ loves us! He wants marriage to be an example of His love, and it is up to us to live up to this challenge. Look at a few examples of His love toward those that we might have cut off, condemned, and crucified:
- He didn't condemn the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11)
- He restored Peter after he denied him (John 21:15-17)
- He took time to minister to the woman who had five husbands and was with another man (John 4:1-25)
- He set free the demoniac (man possessed with demons) and sent him to preach about how he had been set free (Mark 5: 1- 20)
- He healed the woman that was ostricized from society and had been bleeding for 12 years (Luke 8:43-48)
So, if He can love an adulterer, a fornicator, an outcast, one who betrayed Him, one who was an outcast, and even those who mocked Him and crucified Him why can't we love those who have done much less? Why can't we forgive when He forgave the ones who chanted for Him to be crucified instead of Barabbas? Why are we struggling to love the one we stood at an altar and declared our love for?
Secure your love walk, Beloved! Make the foundation of your home love. So, if your husband offends you this week remember the love of Christ. If your wife says something that upsets you remember the love of Christ. Remember that you are called to love like He loves. His love overlooks faults. His love is not dependent upon reciprocation. His love is not based on emotion. He made a decision to love us all even with our faults and inusfficiencies. Love like Jesus! Otherwise, we are just making noise and accomplishing nothing. Love!
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