What do you want to see in the mirror?

We all need a vision. A dream of what we can do, goals to accomplish, and intentions of who we want to become.

It's so very important - if we don't know where we want to go, how will we ever get there? We must have a picture in our minds of the future so that we have focus and purpose in the everyday grind. Okay - being realistic, we might not get exactly what we think is right. We all know God has a tendency to change plans! But if we have something to work towards, we can live every day with our priorities in mind, intentionally driving ourselves towards the goal.

~Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 1 Corinthians 9:24~

~Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1~

There's never a better time than the present to make some goals. PLEASE note: I said goals. NOT new years-style resolutions - because we all know what happens to those.

There are many areas of life that deserve a goal - our spiritual growth, relationships, health, organisation, financial - and so on and so on. I'd say just pick one to start off. We might want to read our bibles an hour a day, love our husbands better, keep up with laundry and save money but we can't do it all at once!! Start with one - the most important. I can guarantee if you take on too much at once you'll do great for a week tops and then become so discouraged you'll never want to make a goal again - (sound like new years??) But if you gradually begin a change in your life and keep up with it, then you can bring in another and another and before you know it your life will have changed!

Here's a 'smart' little helper for creating goals: link >> http://www.mindtools.com/page6.html

S - Specific
M - Measurable
A - Attainable
R - Relevant
T - Time-bound

It's also important that your goals be positive ( "I'm going to..." rather than "I'll never do... again") and that they are in present tense and involve action ("I am growing in God's word daily by reading" rather than "I'm going to/I want to become more knowledgeable") believe it or not these little phrase details can make it easier for you to attain your goal - just by the way your subconscious understands them!

So go! Become the person you want to see look back at you in the mirror!

Two Hedges

Much godly wisdom about the feminine character is packed into the first six verses of 1 Peter, chapter three. The primary charge to women in this passage involves submission, and the rest of the exhortation addresses related areas of modesty, internal beauty, a gentle and quiet spirit, trust in God, and fear. It is vital that women understand the connection submission to husbands has to that much desired gentle and quiet spirit.
God has put two hedges around a Christian woman for her protection. The first and more important is a woman's trust in God. This is followed by a godly submission to husbands. "For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands" (v. 5). Trust in God enables a woman to submit to her husband, for it is certainly a prerequisite. She tells herself that God is faithful, that He has commanded her to submit to her husband, and that her obedience to God in submission is pleasing to Him. When submission begins to look foolish or frightening or just plain unappealing, a woman remembers this hedge of trust in God. He has promised never to leave or forsake His children. A wife must trust Him and walk by faith. This is the first protection.
Some people mistakenly think that a gentle and quiet spirit is displayed when a woman never speaks. This has concerned some of the outgoing personalities because they don't know how to be a silent lump. This is merely looking at externals. Certainly sometimes a quiet spirit will be exhibited by silence, but not always. And a quiet person can be all worked up on the inside. This is missing the point. A heart that is resting in the faithfulness of God is gentle and quiet; it is not stirred up with worry and anxiety. This gentle and quiet spirit is a calm, peaceful spirit. It is a tame spirit, a gentled spirit. I have often compared this kind of spirit to a glassy lake, not turbulent or troubled, but hardly showing a ripple. In contrast, the anxious spirit is like a stormy sea with whitecaps whipping along the shore. This of course brings to mind our Lord calming the troubled Sea of Galilee. Likewise, He can calm our troubled spirits when we look to Him.
The second hedge of protection is the submission itself. When a woman trusts God, she is enabled to submit joyfully to her husband. This submission is another hedge of protection, because it is obedience. The responsibility of the decision rests on the husband; the consequences are his problem, not hers. This resting in God and submission to husband is what makes a woman beautiful: "let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God" (v. 4). God thinks highly of this gentled spirit, and so should we. We must strive for this kind of beauty, for it is incorruptible. A calm wife is a joy to her husband; a worried wife is another problem that needs solving.
A woman who is anxious and worried is marring her beauty because fear is antithetical to a biblical beauty. Sarah trusted in God and submitted to her husband in obedience. Christian women are called to imitate her faith and her good works of submission. This kind of good work keeps women from being afraid with any terror. When she is tempted to worry about a decision her husband has made, a woman can tell herself that she is trusting God and submitting to her husband, and that is what she is called to do. She is not sinning and can rest peacefully, knowing that God is pleased when she acts like one of Sarah's daughters.
Consider what this kind of trust and submission looks like. Your husband has decided the family will travel to visit an aging aunt who lives in the mountains. It's snowing. The roads are slippery. You are tempted to worry, and you think it's a bad idea to go. Now stop and think about it. Trust God. Is He the Lord of the roads? Is He Lord of the weather? If He isn't, then go back to your worrying. But because He is sovereign over all things, you can trust Him. Next, if you have given your husband your advice, and he still wants to go, submit to him. It's his call. Trust God, and submit to your husband. Rest and be beautiful.
Many areas of marriage and child rearing are affected by this trust and submission. Your husband wants you to homeschool and you feel inadequate. Your husband wants to put your children in the local Christian school. You're afraid they are not ready, or that the school won't be what you hoped. Your daughter wants to go shopping with a friend in a big city an hour away. Your husband says yes and you wish he hadn't. Your son is playing football, and you are worried he will get hurt. In all these situations, after respectful communication of your concerns, trust God and submit to your husband. This is the only way to have a gentle and quiet spirit.
Remember, submission is your primary duty before God to your husband. Learn to submit in a trusting, beautifying manner. Not only will God be pleased, but so will your husband. Even unbelievers are impressed with such behavior (v.1). Learn to appreciate the two hedges you have about you, and be thankful.



By Nancy Wilson

An Article Written by an Atheist

If I firmly believed, as millions say they do, that the knowledge and practice of religion in this life influences destiny in another, then religion would mean to me everything.I would cast away earthly enjoyments as dross, earthly thoughts and feelings as vanity. Religion would be my first waking thought and my last image before sleep sank me into unconsciousness. I should labor that cause alone. I would take thought for the morrow of eternity alone.I would esteem one soul gained for heaven worth a life of suffering. Earthly consequences would never stay my hand, or seal my lips. Earth, its joys and its griefs, would occupy no moment of my thoughts. I would strive to look upon eternity alone, and on the immortal soul around me, soon to be everlastingly happy or everlastingly miserable.


I would go forth to the world and preach to it in season and out of season, and my text would be:“WHAT SHALL IT PROFIT A MAN IF HE GAIN THE WHOLE WORLD AND LOSE HIS OWN SOUL?”