Jiggity-jig

Here I am again, back in VA with another week of camp-counseling under my belt. I can't decide whether I learned more from the sessions, discussions with people, or the actual counseling. Suffice it to say, the Lord definitely taught me, reminded me of, and encouraged me with several things. Perhaps later on I'll type up the main highlights of the sessions, but I think one of the best parts was simply hearing my girls memorizing Psalm 139 and listening again and again to God's promises for my future.

O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
You have hedged me in behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it...

I had the best cabin-ful of girls in the camp, I believe. Not only did I have the liveliest girls, but they also loved the Lord and personally challenged me with their passion and determination to seek His will and to please Him. I got to spend some time also with friends who I grow to love better with each day I spend around them. I honestly think that God put each girl in my cabin for a particular reason, and brought me there for a particular reason so that we each might come away with something. Good stuff.

Oh yes. And I had my stage debut as Miss Hannigan in "It's a Hard-knock Life," only my girls and I changed the words a bit and added a couple acts so they yelled, "WE LOVE YOU, MISS HEFFINGTON!" ...it was pretty great and I got to traipse around the stage with bright red lipstick, every necklace I owned, over-stated rouge and bright blue eyeshadow. Oh yes. Once we get pictures uploaded and/or the videos, I can post some here if you are interested in seeing them.

Life did not slow down while I was gone. Not a bit, actually. I was greeted on the ride home by the news that another good friend was in a relationship that I'd "marked my words" about at least nine months ago, though I'd been thinking about it longer. :) Every one's growin' up and goin' off to save China! *cue Mu-shu voice*

*sigh*

Life just doesn't stand still, does it?

Revelation--my thoughts on this Battle-cry

In a recent letter from a friend of mine, she asked what my thoughts on the book of Revelation were. As always, my pen was ready and I found my thoughts tumbled out rather neatly onto the page. That being said, I thought, "Why not touch on a such a heavy-hitting subject on the blog and get it done in one fell swoop?" :D Yes, I'm a bit of a rabble-rouser. I like to discuss controversial things. ;)

So, dear friends of mine, here was my reply. I thought you might like to read it.

"You ask if I have any thoughts on the book of Revelation? In general (being a confirmed and long-time optimist) I find it a book full of singular foretellings--dark and shadow-filled as they are--that are chained about with triumphant, blood-red promises of eternity. Revelation is a warring book; a sword book, but a hopeful one.
Perhaps I somewhat belong to that group of Christians who skim through it because we do not understand, but really, I skim through the book with the eye of a determined reader. I know the happily ever after and I love to read it so, I pay little heed to the Apollyons by the wayside.
I cannot pretend to understand most of the book--there are so many conclusions one could draw. I often think that the Lord doesn't mean for us to know and understand all till we do reach the Beginning of forever. but I do see--through all the devils and brimstone, through all the plagues and pestilence--my same Lord Jesus. Only now He is seated on a white horse with His secret name written on His breast and He is a King again--triumphant, powerful, majestic.
I am not one who worries about the end times. Why should I fear when it is certain that the same Lord who keeps me now shall keep me then?
I am not a great theologian. I am not a woman gifted in logic. Perhaps I make a hash of both in my simplicity. But too often I believe we Christians make the same error as the French patriots in the Revolution. We exalt the Goddess, Reason, and shamble out our logic and "theology," tangling things that Jesus meant to be simple and childlike.
To quote a great man of the faith: "One thing I know: I am a great sinner and He is a great Savior."
So what good would circular discussions of pre, post, and mid-tribulation rapture be? His word prevails all through and He has promised me that He will not allow my foot to be moved.
That is all, and that is enough for me.
So sorry for my rambling. Doubtless I gave you far more than you asked for. And do know that I think Bible-study and theologic discussion very worthwhile and important things, so long as we do not forget with Whom our allegiance lays, and all He has promised us."

So, what are your thoughts? Any comments? Ideas? Additives? ;)

The Beautiful Branding

We are called to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are called to lay down our lives for them as Christ has laid down His life for us. Most often we think of missionaries and martyrs when this topic comes up. After all, aren't they the ones day in and day out laying down their lives to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Yes, that is true. And I am so grateful for all these men and women who have been called to that capacity.

But sometimes laying down our lives is a bit more subtle. I have been thinking on this topic a lot recently, and even the sermon at church on Sunday tied in. (in a strange Rachel's Mind sort of way.:) The preacher spoke on the Great Commission in Matthew 28, and about how we are called to spread the love of Christ wherever we are. We can "go," "baptize,", and "teach," but the base-line of it all is that we share Christ with others. This is something I've been convicted of recently in my life. Through God's grace I try to live a life pleasing to Him. I try to be a good testimony through my blogs, and other places. But how many times have I personally shared the Gospel with someone?

I ask myself that question and my mind blanks out. Have I? Have I? Yes, I have spoken of Jesus to perfect strangers before, but I cannot bring to mind a time I've actually told someone the Gospel on my own, apart from any event where that was my mission. Just an everyday conversation with someone, telling them about the great Love that has saved me. It pains me to realize and confess that. True, some of it is because I've been blessed to live in and associate with a group of people who already love Jesus and I haven't had many opportunities to have in-depth conversations with unbelievers. But that isn't an excuse. I need to look for opportunities to share my Savior with others. How can I keep from singing this glorious news?

That was Part One of the thoughts going through my mind. But the other part was loosely connected and reverts back to laying down our lives for others. I went from thinking about telling others about Christ to living for Christ. This means sacrificing our will, our dreams, our comfort and giving it over to Jesus so that He can make it perfect and beautiful through our brokenness.

It happens in life, sometimes, that we feel the Lord's hand in a situation and we move forward and our hopes and dreams run ahead of us and suddenly we come up against a wall. The door is shut. There is no way through that wall for us. We turn around and see Jesus standing there behind us.

"Lord, why would You have me do this thing only to make me turn around and go back the way I came?"

That is the temptation. And yet do we stop and wonder if, perhaps, our walking that far along that path was a way we were laying down our lives for others? It could be. Have we told Christ that the only way He can use us is if things turn out the way we want them to? Are we willing to be used to minister to another, to help the Lord accomplish His plan in another's life even if it doesn't appear to benefit us? Even if it seems it might hurt us?

Because I know that Jesus has a plan for my life, for your life. And He will use those situations to mold and shape us further into His image. His mercies are sharp, but tender. His ways are narrow but so perfect. Are we willing to be marked with His plan? It is a beautiful branding, but a branding all the same, and it might sting at times. We might "get nothing" out of a situation, have to turn around and go home and start from scratch. But if we were being used by Christ, He was still in the details. He brought you forth and He will bring you home.

I don't mean to make Jesus seem to take pleasure in wounding us. No! But are we willing to love our brothers this way? In the laying down our life for a friend? It's a sharp question that demands a quick throb from the thorn of Love planted in our hearts. A sweet, broken pain that heals as it cuts....

"Oh, bless our God, you peoples!

And make the voice of His praise to be heard,

⁹ 

Who keeps our soul among the living,

And does not allow our feet to be moved.

¹⁰ 

For You, O God, have tested us;

You have refined us as silver is refined.

¹¹ 

You brought us into the net;

You laid affliction on our backs.

¹² 

You have caused men to ride over our heads;

We went through fire and through water;

But You brought us out to rich fulfillment."

~Psalm 66:8-12

Joy--do you dare?

"But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; an most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear." Philippians 1:12-14

Dad preached on this first chapter of Philippians in church on Sunday. My mind--which has a fearful habit of wandering--fixed upon these verses and stayed there while the rest of the universe whirled on. I am afraid I was not even thinking very hard upon the rest of the chapter, for I had my share of the sermon in these two verses.

I began thinking of Paul. He was thrown into prison, beaten, mocked, etc. and yet his attitude in these verses is not:

 "Poor me--look at what you might have to suffer for Christ!" 

= But =

"This is awesome! I want you to know that this is the epitome of my ministry! This is why I follow Christ."

Soon that thought was followed by another. How effective would Paul's ministry have been if, instead of this outlook, Paul had sulked? The letter to the Philippians might not have even been written if Paul decided to "have a reality check" and dwell in how he perceived the situation. In a way, the effectiveness of Paul's ministry depended upon his attitude. It was indeed Paul who said "To live is Christ, to die is gain," and yet I think too often martyrs of the faith have a "See me and be filled with holy dread" aura about them. Paul was cheerful in his chains. And because of that his ministry was far greater than he could have imagined!

To apply this to my own life, I thought back on last year--it was a difficult year, full of the strain and stress of starting up a naturally-grown produce farm/flowers/bakery. I'm not saying it wasn't a good year, but it was certainly a trial. And I am ashamed (and yet want to be truthful) to admit that I sulked. I sulked nearly all year. Not outwardly [most of the time] but in my heart of hearts I was being an ox--a beast that did not like what was going on and did not want to be in an uncomfortable spot and could not wait till it was all over. It was not just me that realized it was hard...in the past months when friends have asked if we are doing the same thing again this year, their questions have been tempered with remarks such as:

"Yeah...it sounded pretty stressful."

"Yes, I could tell it was a hard year for all of you."

Eeesh. Was it that obvious? Oh dear. I learned a lot and grew a lot over the year, and by the autumn my attitude was changing. But as we read these verses in church on Sunday, I couldn't help but wonder how much more I could have learned and how much more ministry I could have had if I had had a cheerful, submissive heart over it all. Paul's reaction to imprisonment was an inspiration to me--having a cheerful heart and playing Pollyanna are all very good things to talk about in theory, but when the nitty-gritty moments come, are we letting Jesus have his way with us? Are we accepting it all with joyful hearts, truly knowing that something beautiful will rise out of the ashes of the situation?

This skill can be applied to so many areas of life. I think of Sarah Mally, author of Before You Meet Prince Charming. (A fabulous book for younger teen girls)

Sarah, Stephen, and Grace Mally)

She is 30 years old and still unmarried, yet because Sarah has been faithful to the Lord during her single years and has lived them joyfully and fully, she has become a role-model for hundreds of young women across the nation and around the world. If Sarah had decided to bemoan her lot and sit with her hands folded until a guy came and swept her off her feet, I can imagine she'd be a bitter, lonely old maid. But the term "old-maid" could no more be applied to Sarah Mally than it could be applied to a mother with a dozen children. Being an "old-maid" is a state of the heart--not the circumstance. But I digress.

In short, I was just struck by the idea that the effectiveness of our ministry is, in some measure, inversely proportional to our attitude through-out the trial. What are your thoughts on it? :)

Love Never Fails!

Please listen to this song--it will bless you so much! :)

"Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." -1 Corinthians 13:8-10

Happy Valentine's Day, girls! <3

Mirrors of Glory

We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image. ~2 Corinthians 3:18

The greatest characteristic a Christian can exhibit is this completely unveiled openness before God, which allows that person's life to become a mirror for others. When the Spirit fills us, we are transformed, and by beholding God we become mirrors. You can always tell when someone has been beholding the glory of the Lord, because your inner spirit senses that he mirrors the Lord's own character. Beware of anything that would spot or tarnish that mirror in you. It is almost always something good, but not what is best.
The most important rule for us is to concentrate on keeping our lives open to God. Let everything else including work, clothes, and food be set aside. The busyness of things obscures our concentration on God. We must maintain a position of beholding Him, keeping our lives completely spiritual through and through. Let other things come and go as they will; let other people criticize us as they will; but never allow anything to obscure the life that "is hidden with Christ in God" (Col. 3:3) Never let a hurried lifestyle disturb the relationship of abiding in Him. This is an easy thing to allow, but we must guard against it. The most difficult lesson of the Christian life is learning how to continue "beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord...."
               ~Oswald Chamber My Utmost for His Highest

I read today's devotion in Oswald Chambers' book, and was challenged and blessed by it. I know we all have met someone who is a mirror of Christ, glowing with a beauty that cannot be mortal for its very preciousness, seeming to shed a shimmering light over their entire countenance. You know when you've met such a person because of the peace and joy that ebbs out of them and over you. It's such a blessing and just think about it! Everyone one of us, as Christians, has the daily opportunity to be such a mirror! It's a great honor, but a responsibility. Are we letting our mirrors become smirched and dull, or are we spending time with our Lord and abiding in Him so that our very faces shine with His glory?

Marriage...an idol?

Marriage is a beautiful thing, and one I have dreamed of since I was a tiny girl. Come to think of it, I believe nearly every dream I've had since my girlhood has been wrapped up in a man of my own, a family of my own, a house of my own...living in a large family encouraged such thinking, as my heroes, my examples, my life was made of such stuff.

But let's be candid, girls. Sometimes our dreams do not reflect the Lord's plan. As a "fortune cookie" my brother got the other day said, (Gracious me, we know not to depend on those!) "The only thing we can know for sure about future developments is that they will develop." (Truism, anyone? :P) And as a Christian, we have the assurance that those plans are made for our good. (Rom. 8:28) It is tempting to think we know more about our own hearts than Christ does. It is tempting to think we ought to "help" Christ orchestrate the plans because after all, we could never tread that path--He must be confused.
Girls, girls. We must learn to give our idols up. Even the idols unconsciously made. For me, for a long time, that has been marriage. Not that I have worshiped the idea, or even made overmuch of it. But I have feared and dreaded and balked against the idea of being what people have termed "An old maid."
I am reluctant to admit it to the world, but hitherto my thinking has been more along these lines:

"And if I am called to be single my entire life [God forbid!] then I'll do such-and-such." 

Living my entire life without marrying? Just sitting here for 80 years with no change in my daily habits? Sheesh! Not me, Lord. You must have another plan for me! I don't think I have the gift of Singleness.

 But lately my precious Savior has been showing me otherwise. He has not told me that I will never be married--for all I know I could be a wife within a year or two! But He has shown me that He is enough. I cannot live these days as a single young lady waiting for a husband. I could very well never be married--I don't know God's plan. So what good could it do me to sulk for ten years until I turn 30, resign myself to the idea of never being married, and finally get my act together?
No. If being a single woman all my life is what the Lord calls me to, I want every day from now to 30 and from 30 to 100 to be full and vibrant and joyful. I want to pursue things I am interested in, honing my skills and talents to be used for His glory. I want to be an inspiration to my sisters, I want to help my family and friends.

I want to go places and do things and live a full life.

If that includes marriage and my own family, praise the Lord! If not? I don't wish to be a dusty parlor-decoration...a proverbial bowl of potpourri dry-rotting in a corner while making sweet smiles and sighs over dried up, youthful dreams.
I have gained much encouragement from the biography of Amy Carmichael that Elisabeth Elliot wrote: A Chance to Die. (The best of both worlds, anyone? ;) Amy Carmichael is one of the most beloved women of all time, lived to a ripe old age, had a huge family in India, and yet never ever married. She was an amazing woman of Jesus--charming and vibrant, lively and merry....real.

I look at her example and I think, "Would I have the courage?" and then Jesus puts a gentle hand on my shoulder and whispers, "You don't need courage--all you need is Me."
And really, girls, that's the whole of it. We don't need courage. We need Christ. I am confident that the same Lord that keeps me today, that blesses me, prospers me, and holds me will be the same Lord that will keep me in whatever path He has prepared. That is all I need, and that is all that matters. We have Jesus, and "the fullness of Him who fills all in all," as Ephesians 1 says.

"All the paths of the Lord are loving and faithful" Psalm 25:10 I have pondered this verse lately, and have found that it feeds my spirit. All does not mean "all - except the paths I am walking in now," or "nearly all - except this especially difficult and painful path." All must mean all. So, your path with its unexplained sorrow or turmoil, and mine with its sharp flints and briers - and both our paths, with their unexplained perplexity, their sheer mystery - they are His paths, on which he will show himself loving and faithful. Nothing else; nothing less"

~Amy Carmichael

Just a bit of Love.

Do you ever get to that point in your personal Bible reading when there are just so many choices of where to read you get overwhelmed and end up reading a Psalm? :D Lately I have been doing that, but it was not entirely satisfying, so I did a sister-ish thing and asked Sarah to assign me a book to read.

 "Ummm....First John?" she answered, looking at me as if to be sure I was okay.

It was an off-the-cuff answer, but Sarah? I'm so glad you gave it to me! :D I hadn't read 1 John in awhile, but ever since I started reading I've been overwhelmed and delighted by the richness and tenderness of this book of God's word. Right from the start John gives the Gospel and tells us that he writes these things to us that our joy may be full.That, right there, is such a great reminder of what the Christian life must be. Full of joy and abundant in it.

Maybe it's because I'm a writer myself and I pay attention to little things like sentence structure, but I was also impressed by the very word choices John used. He piles words upon words in a way that leaves you feeling as if your arms were full to the brim with packages of God's love. There is no condemnation in the way John writes, only a desperate plea for us to recognize the love of Jesus for us. I love the first part of chapter 2:

"My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world."

Wham! The richness of the gift of grace is seen so clearly here, even by how we are addressed as "Little children." Not Dirty Little Sinners, not You People Out There, not Everyone in the World Who Needs a Savior, but as if Christ stooped down, gathered us in His strong, all-encompassing arms, and whispered, "Little Children, come to Me."

 Then in 1 John 2:22 he says, "Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also."

This verse is worded so flawlessly. It states the case of things with clarity and conciseness, without pointing fingers. It is so beautifully black and white and loving. Deny the Son and you won't have the Father either. But acknowledge the Son and you have both of Them. :)
In the end of Chapter Two there is a whole paragraph that strikes deep chords with me:

"These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him." (1 John 2:26-27)

I will admit that I struggle with loving the Prunes & Prisms variety of Christians--those who value propriety above a personal relationship with Jesus. We have all met these poor, constricted people who put on so many garments of "convictions" that they can scarcely breathe, they are so pressed on from all sides.

 I want to caution us all to only put on the convictions God hands us, not ones that Men, fallible Men tell us to put on. There are times when God may use Men to convict us, but listen for the Shepherd's voice and listen only to Him. As he says, we do not need to be taught by Men, for the Holy Spirit and God's word will teach us all things, as it has already taught us.
Did we need people to tell us taking a cookie from the jar was wrong as a child? No, we knew it was wrong because the Holy Spirit was teaching us. Do we need people to tell us to do or not to do something? No. Ask Jesus about it and He will show you His stand on the point. He will answer, and after that don't mind what Men say--you've got the approval of the Most High Lord.
 Anyway, I think I've succeeded in taking you for a hopeless ramble again, but I just thought I'd share some of the things the Lord had been teaching me recently. I hope it encourages one of you!

A Tale of Turkeys, Pollyanna, and A Selfish Girl

"Happy Thanksgiving!"

 It has become a trite expression, and one I'm sometimes reluctant to say because I don't get that excited about turkey. I mean, come on! And then I mentally stagger backward, realizing what I just did. I just succumbed to America's holiday illness--that of commercialism! The word "Thanksgiving" now means nothing to my imagination except for another family dinner and a big turkey? I refuse to accept that.

Some years I am overwhelmed with gratitude on this holiday. Other years, the stress of life has caught up with me and I am not even in practice at recognizing blessings for what they are. As little as I want to admit it, this is that sort of a year, in some ways. Not that I am ungrateful for the big things: food, shelter, family, etc., but I've been feasting on God's goodness and not even stopping to thank Him for it. It's not easy for me to admit it, because it sounds so...horrid of me! Truly. If I stop to think about it, my heart crinkles up inside me with shame. I feel like precisely like Amy March when she said, "I'm a selfish girl."

I will admit to focusing on everything that is either happening too quickly and too much, or the things that are not happening at all. I've labeled my blessings as things I'm entitled to, and I have not recognized them as God gifts. Now that I'm stopping to confess this spirit of ingratitude in myself, I am ashamed. What is it that I've let myself slip into? And as silly as it sounds, the first person I think of when I think of someone who has the best heart of thanksgiving I think of....

Pollyanna.

I never much liked her in the Disney version--it seemed she knew the Glad Game was just a game. But recently I watched the Masterpiece Theatre version of Pollyanna, and I found my heart reaching out to this little girl who was so full of the joy of living. It sounds sappy, but it's true. There was one scene where she was just laying on her stomach in the grass, staring at the lake and singing a hymn...it was so simple, and yet it was so right. I know in my own life I am guilty of the sin of trying to fit too much in the cracks. Every moment is filled with something. I am always doing things, and this year in particular, I've left no time for being. It's a lesson children know well. Pollyanna asks her aunt, after she hears her new schedule: "But when will I have time to live? I know I shall be breathing, but it's not the same thing as living, you know."

A.A. Milne said it well: "Don't underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering."

I think of the story in Luke 10:38-42....

³⁸ Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. ³⁹ And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” ⁴¹ And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. ⁴² But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

I have been a Martha this year, and I've been wrong. Oh Lord Jesus, forgive me for my ungrateful, busy heart. Let me be Mary, before Your feet, enjoying life as You give it to me, and contenting myself in Your gifts to me. Now the only thing left to do is to say with Lady Harriet, "I feel chastened...truly." And to make a list of the first twenty things I am praising Jesus for.

1. I thank You for your loving arms that hold me, even when I am as fractious as a croupy baby
2. I thank You for my sisters
3. And my brothers
4. I thank You for parents who are bringing me up to love You, and to trust You
5. I thank You for godly men like Peter Marshall who have taught us to love You better
6. I thank You for literature and the ability to read
7. I thank You for quotes. :)
8. I thank You for distinct seasons
9. I thank You for laughter...what would I do without it?
10. I thank You for the gift of music
11. And for the way You with-hold some gifts, only to pour others into our laps more richly than before.
12. I thank You for whoever thought up baking
13. I thank You for holidays were everyone pauses and remembers the simpler things in life.
14. I thank You for inspiration for so many projects
15. I thank You for health
16. I thank You for dancing
17. I thank You for dear friends
18. I thank You for your vast, unending, incomprehensible, enormous love that NEVER leaves me
19. I thank You for cranberries
20. I thank You for Cricket (my cuddly black pussy)

Thank you Jesus! Now all the rest of you have a blessed Thanksgiving, and please, let's not underestimate the value of Doing Nothing. :) I pledge here and now to take some time to Do Nothing each day...will you? :)

                                               Love,

                                                    Rachel

Man Cannot Live on Daydreams Alone...

I have already confessed that I am a Romantic. Entirely. I like nothing better than to hear a good love-story, or watch a BBC period-drama. My favorite dreams are those in which I get married. I've always been that way, and I assume I always will.
My greatest desire (second to living for Christ) is to be a wife and mother. A wife to a man who will undoubtedly have his fault and foibles, but to whom I will be a help-meet and encourager, a companion and the love of his life. A mother to a host of children who will go out and do Kingdom Work. Our home will be a castle and I'll be queen.
It's a fond wish of mine, and I admit, at times, to spending too much time daydreaming about it. But since I graduated the Lord has been convicting me of a certain area we single daughters too often overlook. And it is this:

It's okay to have a life. It's good to have a life.

Now let me explain. In the words of an older woman I was talking to about this topic:

"The godly men are looking for a woman who is living a joyful, vibrant life. They don't want the girls sitting around waiting for a man to complete them. They want to marry a whole woman who is living life to the fullest, not a mousy day-dreamer who mopes through all her single days."

And you know, it's true? Think about it from a guy's perspective. What sort of woman will be the better help-meet? The girl who sat knitting and sighing over the thought of one day being a help-meet, or the girl who was gaining new skills, meeting the needs of those around her, helping out in any way she could until her man arrived?
Who does he want? A girl who can't exist in any productive and profitable way without his constant attention and affirmation, or a girl who knows the nitty-gritty and is content to aid her husband's plans and dreams even when he temporarily forgets her need for tenderness and loving attention?
That's a skill that we single daughters have plenty of opportunity to learn. We can practice and train to be joyful, vibrant women with full lives in this season when we don't have our man here to love us. This is prime time to grow in our walks with the Lord and learn to rely on Him and only Him for our contentment and unwavering love. Let's not waste these precious years, girls. If we can learn how to live now, we will be a double-blessing to our husbands in that Someday. Cherish your dreams, and don't cast romance aside entirely...I know I don't. :) But truly girls, I think we could all do with a little less daydreaming and a little more living. After all, we don't want to be the woman who, in her old age, looks back to her youth and sees a life of empty yesterdays. This season is the only one like it in life. Let's not spend them playing Fancy's Fool. Let's live life to the hilt, and trust in the Lord to bring us our man in His timing.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.   

God tells us to delight in Him and He will give us the desires of our hearts. He was the One who put them there, and He'll follow through. As my dear friend, Abigail said, "God doesn't give us empty desires." :)
  In closing I wanted to share a quote that I found in a very unlikely place, (The Civil War Diary of Sarah Morgan) but that has been such a comfort to me in the Hard To Wait times:

"If I am to marry, some blessed man is destined for me. He may be at my elbow, or at the antipodes. It matters not for go where I will, do what I will, sooner or later, at the time appointed by Heaven, we will meet, and nothing will prevent it."
   ~Sarah Morgan

Have a blessed day, dear friends! ~Rach

College: To go or Not to go?

One of the first issues I wanted to address on my blog is my position on the college question...

To go, or not to go?

I know this is a controversial question among Christian families, and understandably. My belief is quite simple. College is not evil. For a young woman to go to college is not sinful.

Before I explain, I want to remind us of the famous passage in Titus 2:

"...that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed..."

I believe that for most young women, the way the Lord calls us to serve Him is in our homes, and that is where our femininity shines and glorifies Him most....if that is where Jesus calls us.

In the past few years God has given me a vision for searching things out for myself, not adopting convictions and beliefs based off of man's opinion. I want to be like the Bereans in Acts 17:11

"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

I also believe that regarding some of these side issues, one cannot make a blanket statement. I cannot say it dishonors God for young women to go to college if God has clearly told a young woman and her parents to make that decision. I have personally known young women who went to college, and whose hearts are more focused on Jesus than some of the stay-at-home daughters I have met. 

The heart is the issue. If a young lady is following Jesus, He will guide her to where He wants her to be. 

Psalm 32:8 "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye."

When Jesus is at the center of our heart and we are are letting Him lead our lives, we will not, we cannot go wrong. For many, and I may even say most young women, this will mean that Jesus wants you to serve your family as a help-meet at home. But there are some cases where God will have a young woman go to college to gain skills He knows she will need someday in His plan. 

Who are we to question His omniscience?

 I believe the key here is asking Jesus, praying about and discussing this decision with your parents and other wise people, and deciding according to what He says. 

It would be just as wrong for a young lady to immediately sign onto the "Stay At Home" group as it would be for a young lady to assume she was meant to go to college. 

We must first seek the Lord in what He would have us do, and act accordingly. Now, to restate my beliefs on the subject, let me rephrase myself:
I do not believe college is sinful. I do not condemn young ladies who feel the Lord leads them to attend college. I do believe for young women in large, the home is the "proper sphere" so the speak, and the place where they most glorify God. I believe Jesus has led me to stay at home during my single years.

So there you have it! Your thoughts? Questions? Comments? Thanks for reading! ~Rachel