Pondering them all in my heart

I've been a little silent these days. Both online & in my real life. It started out a forced silence; due to some unexpected issues, I found myself with very few cell phone minutes, no home phone, and a daughter with RSV, a very contagious illness. So I stayed home, didn't call anyone, and stayed away from Facebook because God was asking me to "come away and be separate."

Not that there is anything wrong with any of those things, but I think He was just drawing me away for some quiet time, to ponder my life and some things He's been teaching me, and to learn new things as well.

The following links are just a few of the things that He has/had been teaching me. It's always encouraging and not-so-surprising that He directs my paths, even on the internet, to places that He has designed for my ultimate growth. I hope they minister to you as well.

Self-Entitlement: "I call myself a servant but expect to be treated like a queen."

Time Management: Using Eternity as my Filter

Be Intentional: Living Life on Purpose

Blessings: What does it really mean to be blessed by God? Is it only when things are going the way we want them to?

We've been studying a book called Loving Your Husband (Cynthia Heald, NavPress) in my weekly mom's group. When I entered this study, I thought I would be learning a lot about how to love my husband--and don't get me wrong, I am--but I've found what I am learning more is that this life is not about me. That at the core of being a servant is the realization that you are there for the sole purpose of making someone else's life better (not the other way around!).

And the only way that we can accomplish any of these seemingly difficult tasks is by realizing that we have to look to Christ to provide everything we need. No husband, boyfriend, job, child, or bank account will fill that empty place every woman has inside her. Only God can fill that void. Only He can be everything we've always dreamed of. He is our "Knight in Shining Armor."

When you can enter a marriage, start a new relationship, renew an old friendship, and you have realized that it's not about you anymore, but about the person you are trying to love...there is such freedom in that place!

Consider this quote by Lawrence Crabb, Jr., from the book The Marriage Builder:

Until I am aware that my needs are already met in Christ, I will be motivated by emptiness to meet my needs. When by simple faith I accept Christ's shed blood as full payment for my sins, I am brought into a relationship with an infinite Being of love and purpose who fully satisfies my deepest needs for security and significance. Therefore I am freed from self-centered preoccupation with my own needs; they are met. It is now possible for me to give to others out of my fullness rather than needing to receive from others because of my emptiness. For the first time, I have the option of living selflessly.

I think I've rambled on enough for one night! Hope these thoughts have ministered to you as they did to me.