Chapter 10
I am still steadily plodding my way through my happiness project, and it has recently taken a little twist during my journey to develop my spirituality. Like many people, I was raised in church, and after going to college decided I didn't quite agree with all of the principles taught by my church and entered a partying phase. It was short-lived as I became pregnant with my first son. Having kids really made me think, "How am I going to teach these children about spirituality and about Christianity (my faith of choice)?"
I have still been trying to figure that one out. Imagine my surprise and relief when I opened my planner this past week to discover I had penciled in a Women's Conference on Thurs/Fri. I scheduled the dates back in late March or early April, when Valley Family Church sent a flyer advertising their first ever two-day women's conference. The conference was titled, "Press Pause." Sounded just like my type of event! I really admired Valley's woman pastor, Pastor Beth Jones who partnered with her husband Jeff in leading the church. I also thought it would be great for me to get away by myself to recharge spiritually and level with myself about where I stood with God and my beliefs in my faith.
As part of my happiness project, I had assigned myself the task of figuring out the "God" thing. Of course, I believed in a supreme power who held the whole Universe in His hand, and who was floating around out there blessing some and possibly shaking His head sadly at others, myself in the "others" category. After having two children out of wedlock I had pretty much placed harsh judgement on my own self and had trouble figuring out how a God could continue to cheerfully bless someone who had blatantly and carelessly disregarded the laws and rules. But that's why God's ways are not our ways and why He is in charge and we're not. We can't handle the Truth! That God is love and loves us so much He spilled innocent blood to spend an eternity with us as wretched and shameful as we are. We suck! We only matter because He loves us and thinks we're something special.
It was a relief to be at the conference with women I didn't know, so I could feel free to lift my hands or close my eyes and whisper prayers without wondering if my husband thought I was being weird. Yea, I can hear you saying now, "Who cares who is watching and what they think?" C'mon! We've all been there. Who has resisted an altar call at church because of fear of others? People are judgemental, I don't blame you! I had been feeling for a while that I needed to take care of my own spirituality because everyone is for himself in that matter; you can't ride on any coattails or anyone else's good behavior. Not that good behavior is the key :)
So here is what I learned. Night One: I learned that we, women, Us Chix, are called to be LIONESSES. Strong, fierce, partners to men and not competitors to men, allies meant to build each other up. Our Earth is not well and we are in a spiritual WAR. Check out these verses: Luke 4:18, Luke 4:21.
When we begin to think, "I can't possibly do x or x or x" think that we ALL have the same 24 hours in a day. The same 24 hours as the President, the same 24 hours as any celebrity we admire, the same 24 hours as the enemies plotting against our country. Time in itself is a weapon and a gift. The speaker, Lisa Bevere, talked about her study of lions and lionessess for the purpose of writing her new book. She talked about the behavior patterns of the lioness. The lioness is in charge of hunting, of getting the girls together and teaching the kids to hunt, of bringing the meat back to the pack, of making sure the lions are able to feed. The lionessess drag the cubs around with their teeth, and bump heads together with other lionessess to connect. Lionessess also groom each other's faces. Wow. We women are in such competition with one another we will barely help another with their makeup. But to lick another lionessess face clean is atounding and humbling. Bevere argues that sometimes we can't get places in life because we can't see them, and we need other lionessess to look ahead for us and encourage us and help us to continue on. Likewise, God consistently renews our strength when we obey Him. The Bible calls us to be "On Your Feet, Daughter of Zion!". We need to STOP spending our strength on images that cannot be pleased, on believing the lies the Devil is always whispering to us when we stand in the mirror. Our images of ourselves are not God's images of ourselves, but they should be! We have to renew our minds, make the pictures we currently have of ourselves into new pictures with great value and meaning and strength. God says we are made in His image, in His likeness, that we are heirs to the kingdom, royalty! God knit us together in our mother's wombs! What care He has taken to ensure we made our entrance into the world and to let us know how He feels about us through his Word! Are we aware of the ways we need to stand up and fight, but overwhelmed?Here are verses she gave to help us renew our minds: Prov. 6:6-8, and Rom. 15:1-2. I would like to add one to this: Rom. 14:13-23. New way of thinking about things, huh?
Check this out: when Bevere was on a safari to study her lions, there was male lion that needed to be tranquilized. After he was down, some men went to remove his collar when the lioness stood in front of the lion and began pacing. To get to the lion, the men would have to put her down too. Think about this! In order to get to the men in this world, the women are a forefront who will have to be eliminated in order to reach the men. Who often introduces men to the church and God? Women. Who often teaches their children about Christianity? Women. And if the enemy gets to the men by tranquilizing the women, we are not able to provide our powerful force of aide to our men. What are ways the enemy tranquilizes us? By making us DEPRESSED. By making us EMOTIONAL OVEREATERS. By making us CANCEROUS. By making us MENTALLY ILL. By making us OVERWHELMED, TIRED, STRESSED. By making us GIVE UP. Daughters of Zion, Lionessess of Judah, RISE UP!
Night Two: Women, we need a breathrough! "Be ye transformed by the RENEWING of your mind." Change the way you think to change our world. When God transforms us, we don't have to try to be (something different), we already are! How do we transform our minds? 2 Cor.10 says to take a thought and make it captive, then argue for it! Take a thought or promise God has given us in His Word, keep it captive and proclaim it! In your mind, you have certain pictures of yourself that will take constant renovation. Want to know why losing the weight isn't enough? Why finding the perfect man isn't enough? Why having the best job isn't enough for our happiness? Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that GOD is the ONLY THING that can save us and SATISFY us. So if I just heard myself correctly, God is the only answer to true happiness.Ok, happiness project done. Complete! You heard the Man!
The Bible says in Prov. 23:7 that "as a man thinks in his heart,so is he." Our thoughts are overwhelmingly powerful. Want to hear some of my thoughts about myself?
"I don't think I'm a great cook because I'm inexperienced." Yet some of my friends cannot stop raving about my meals.
"I don't think I'm a great mom because I'm depressed." Yet I am seeking help for my depression so I can create a treasurehouse of happy memories for my family.
"I don't think I am a good Christian because I'm not on fire for God and filled with the Holy Spirit". Yet I know that I will find Him when I seek Him with all my heart, as I am growing to do.
"I don't think I'm a good daughter because I've disappointed my parents in so many ways." Man looks at the outside, but the Lord looks at the Heart! Other people will not always agree with you, just do your best, ask for forgiveness, and keep it moving!
Your value, my beautiful and stunning sisters, is determined by what someone will pay for you. We were all trafficked and bought by Satan and sin, and God paid the highest price He knew of to deliver us all from that, whether or not we decided to accept and know Him. He took the risk. "I have loved you with an everlasting love" He declares. Seek after the Lord, and He will deliver you from all your fears. The joy of the Lord is our strength. I pray that any fear, hesitation, depression, bipolarism, anxiety, and suffering in your life be lifted off of you and onto the Lord, for his "yoke is easy and his burden is light." Trade. Cast all your cares on Him, for He CARES for you. The media does not care for you, all they want to do is work you to death to look like an image of perfection in their standards. The credit card companies do not care about you. Rip up their offers and struggle your way into living debt-free and paying cash. Debt does not look good on anybody. God wants us to be prosperous and live abundantly. Let's transform our lives by renewing our minds and calling on God to be our strength as we RISE up and FIERCELY assume our positions in the war that Satan is waging on our minds, our bodies, our government, our third-world countries, our pastors/church communities, our youth, sex trafficking, and everything else that is bringing our world crashing down towards the end of times. "Put on the full armor of God." Lionessess, ARISE!
I am still steadily plodding my way through my happiness project, and it has recently taken a little twist during my journey to develop my spirituality. Like many people, I was raised in church, and after going to college decided I didn't quite agree with all of the principles taught by my church and entered a partying phase. It was short-lived as I became pregnant with my first son. Having kids really made me think, "How am I going to teach these children about spirituality and about Christianity (my faith of choice)?"
I have still been trying to figure that one out. Imagine my surprise and relief when I opened my planner this past week to discover I had penciled in a Women's Conference on Thurs/Fri. I scheduled the dates back in late March or early April, when Valley Family Church sent a flyer advertising their first ever two-day women's conference. The conference was titled, "Press Pause." Sounded just like my type of event! I really admired Valley's woman pastor, Pastor Beth Jones who partnered with her husband Jeff in leading the church. I also thought it would be great for me to get away by myself to recharge spiritually and level with myself about where I stood with God and my beliefs in my faith.
As part of my happiness project, I had assigned myself the task of figuring out the "God" thing. Of course, I believed in a supreme power who held the whole Universe in His hand, and who was floating around out there blessing some and possibly shaking His head sadly at others, myself in the "others" category. After having two children out of wedlock I had pretty much placed harsh judgement on my own self and had trouble figuring out how a God could continue to cheerfully bless someone who had blatantly and carelessly disregarded the laws and rules. But that's why God's ways are not our ways and why He is in charge and we're not. We can't handle the Truth! That God is love and loves us so much He spilled innocent blood to spend an eternity with us as wretched and shameful as we are. We suck! We only matter because He loves us and thinks we're something special.
It was a relief to be at the conference with women I didn't know, so I could feel free to lift my hands or close my eyes and whisper prayers without wondering if my husband thought I was being weird. Yea, I can hear you saying now, "Who cares who is watching and what they think?" C'mon! We've all been there. Who has resisted an altar call at church because of fear of others? People are judgemental, I don't blame you! I had been feeling for a while that I needed to take care of my own spirituality because everyone is for himself in that matter; you can't ride on any coattails or anyone else's good behavior. Not that good behavior is the key :)
So here is what I learned. Night One: I learned that we, women, Us Chix, are called to be LIONESSES. Strong, fierce, partners to men and not competitors to men, allies meant to build each other up. Our Earth is not well and we are in a spiritual WAR. Check out these verses: Luke 4:18, Luke 4:21.
When we begin to think, "I can't possibly do x or x or x" think that we ALL have the same 24 hours in a day. The same 24 hours as the President, the same 24 hours as any celebrity we admire, the same 24 hours as the enemies plotting against our country. Time in itself is a weapon and a gift. The speaker, Lisa Bevere, talked about her study of lions and lionessess for the purpose of writing her new book. She talked about the behavior patterns of the lioness. The lioness is in charge of hunting, of getting the girls together and teaching the kids to hunt, of bringing the meat back to the pack, of making sure the lions are able to feed. The lionessess drag the cubs around with their teeth, and bump heads together with other lionessess to connect. Lionessess also groom each other's faces. Wow. We women are in such competition with one another we will barely help another with their makeup. But to lick another lionessess face clean is atounding and humbling. Bevere argues that sometimes we can't get places in life because we can't see them, and we need other lionessess to look ahead for us and encourage us and help us to continue on. Likewise, God consistently renews our strength when we obey Him. The Bible calls us to be "On Your Feet, Daughter of Zion!". We need to STOP spending our strength on images that cannot be pleased, on believing the lies the Devil is always whispering to us when we stand in the mirror. Our images of ourselves are not God's images of ourselves, but they should be! We have to renew our minds, make the pictures we currently have of ourselves into new pictures with great value and meaning and strength. God says we are made in His image, in His likeness, that we are heirs to the kingdom, royalty! God knit us together in our mother's wombs! What care He has taken to ensure we made our entrance into the world and to let us know how He feels about us through his Word! Are we aware of the ways we need to stand up and fight, but overwhelmed?Here are verses she gave to help us renew our minds: Prov. 6:6-8, and Rom. 15:1-2. I would like to add one to this: Rom. 14:13-23. New way of thinking about things, huh?
Check this out: when Bevere was on a safari to study her lions, there was male lion that needed to be tranquilized. After he was down, some men went to remove his collar when the lioness stood in front of the lion and began pacing. To get to the lion, the men would have to put her down too. Think about this! In order to get to the men in this world, the women are a forefront who will have to be eliminated in order to reach the men. Who often introduces men to the church and God? Women. Who often teaches their children about Christianity? Women. And if the enemy gets to the men by tranquilizing the women, we are not able to provide our powerful force of aide to our men. What are ways the enemy tranquilizes us? By making us DEPRESSED. By making us EMOTIONAL OVEREATERS. By making us CANCEROUS. By making us MENTALLY ILL. By making us OVERWHELMED, TIRED, STRESSED. By making us GIVE UP. Daughters of Zion, Lionessess of Judah, RISE UP!
Night Two: Women, we need a breathrough! "Be ye transformed by the RENEWING of your mind." Change the way you think to change our world. When God transforms us, we don't have to try to be (something different), we already are! How do we transform our minds? 2 Cor.10 says to take a thought and make it captive, then argue for it! Take a thought or promise God has given us in His Word, keep it captive and proclaim it! In your mind, you have certain pictures of yourself that will take constant renovation. Want to know why losing the weight isn't enough? Why finding the perfect man isn't enough? Why having the best job isn't enough for our happiness? Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that GOD is the ONLY THING that can save us and SATISFY us. So if I just heard myself correctly, God is the only answer to true happiness.Ok, happiness project done. Complete! You heard the Man!
The Bible says in Prov. 23:7 that "as a man thinks in his heart,so is he." Our thoughts are overwhelmingly powerful. Want to hear some of my thoughts about myself?
"I don't think I'm a great cook because I'm inexperienced." Yet some of my friends cannot stop raving about my meals.
"I don't think I'm a great mom because I'm depressed." Yet I am seeking help for my depression so I can create a treasurehouse of happy memories for my family.
"I don't think I am a good Christian because I'm not on fire for God and filled with the Holy Spirit". Yet I know that I will find Him when I seek Him with all my heart, as I am growing to do.
"I don't think I'm a good daughter because I've disappointed my parents in so many ways." Man looks at the outside, but the Lord looks at the Heart! Other people will not always agree with you, just do your best, ask for forgiveness, and keep it moving!
Your value, my beautiful and stunning sisters, is determined by what someone will pay for you. We were all trafficked and bought by Satan and sin, and God paid the highest price He knew of to deliver us all from that, whether or not we decided to accept and know Him. He took the risk. "I have loved you with an everlasting love" He declares. Seek after the Lord, and He will deliver you from all your fears. The joy of the Lord is our strength. I pray that any fear, hesitation, depression, bipolarism, anxiety, and suffering in your life be lifted off of you and onto the Lord, for his "yoke is easy and his burden is light." Trade. Cast all your cares on Him, for He CARES for you. The media does not care for you, all they want to do is work you to death to look like an image of perfection in their standards. The credit card companies do not care about you. Rip up their offers and struggle your way into living debt-free and paying cash. Debt does not look good on anybody. God wants us to be prosperous and live abundantly. Let's transform our lives by renewing our minds and calling on God to be our strength as we RISE up and FIERCELY assume our positions in the war that Satan is waging on our minds, our bodies, our government, our third-world countries, our pastors/church communities, our youth, sex trafficking, and everything else that is bringing our world crashing down towards the end of times. "Put on the full armor of God." Lionessess, ARISE!
Thank you for this post. Couldn't have read it at a better time...much needed!
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