Thoughts to Ponder & WholeHearted Home Wednesdays LINKUP

We are DEAD in one sense and ALIVE in another. We are dead to our old, sinful ways and alive in Christ Jesus who nailed all our sins to his cross. 

"And you, 

being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, 
hath he quickened together with him, 
having forgiven you of all trespasses;

Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, 
and took it out of the way,

 nailing it to the cross;"

~Colossians 2:13-15~

Have you ever taken a close look at your life and considered if you are allowing sin to still rein in your life? 

Are the books you read ones that would bring glory to Christ? Through reading are you enjoying a book where sin reins? How about other things that you allow in through your eye gate? Are the things you watch glorifying to Christ? Do they depict situations that would encourage you in your faith? 

These are only two areas which I touched on...ouch, they hurt!! There was a point in my life that God placed His finger on my heart concerning the books I read and what I watched. Taking a good hard look into my heart can reveal much that I need to declutter!!

This week, I am asking God to look deep in my heart and show me what should not be there. God love us to do that. It takes courage. 

Our lives are short, we don't know how long our life will be. Only what's done for Christ will last. Someday, like my friend who was 41, we will enter into eternity. Will we have a beautiful testimony like she does? 

I desire to live within and without of my house in a perfect way. I don't want to allow things that bring shame to the Name of Jesus before my eyes. I am DEAD to sin and QUICKENED or made alive in Christ Jesus. My sin and all my past are NAILED to the cross. 

Linking Up with 
Women in the Word Wednesdays
And
Links on the Sidebar


FABULOUS FAVES!!

Feeling Discouraged?

Laura Rath over at Journey in Faith 
shared a post called:
Feeling Discouraged?






Katie over at Brighten Park shared:
Ten Tips to Maximize Your Time Each Day

Sara over at:
Sara Live it Well

WholeHearted Home Wednesday 

Linkup #12

Time has flown by and it's time to share again!!

I love reading the posts you link, so hurry, hurry, hurry and linkup.

Keep your posts family-friendly on topics such as:

Mothering

Marriage is for Keeps

Homemaking

Homeschooling

From Your Kitchen

Organizing your Home

Gardening

Mom's Sharing Jesus

And any way you have

WholeHeartedly served Christ in your Home

1. Post as many posts as you'd like.
2. Remember the purpose is for community; and women love conversation!! So, please visit at least one blogger who posted on my Linky Party :-)
3. Keep each post honoring to God.
4. Be sure to link back using a text link or use my button below.
5. You may use a 'word' link or my WholeHearted-Home Wednesday's button or link back to WholeHearted Home on your blog or post :-)
6. This Linky Party is open until Saturdays at 11:59pm
7. No Sale Pages for Etsy, Facebook, etc. 
8. Thank you from the bottom of my heart as each of your posts are always such an encouragement to me and other ladies. Happy linking!!

Thanks for dropping by!!

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WholeHearted Home

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Making Sunday Special: Rest from Work

Sunday is a special day. It is the Lord's Day and God says that it is holy. When I was a small child, I can remember Sunday being a day that was set apart, different than the other days of the week. After my husband and I were married for a few years, we chose to make Sunday special in our family.

"Six days shalt thou labour and do all thy work.

But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God:
in it thou shalt not do any work . . . 
Wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day,
and hallowed it."
~Exodus 20:9-11~

You might not remember Sunday ever being much different than the other days of the week. You might not even agree with the things I am sharing about Sunday. 

Did you know that stores weren't always open on Sundays? If you were born in the 1980's, you might not remember the time when no one could shop on Sunday. In the 1970's, stores started opening on Sundays. In the 1960's, even in big cities, everything was closed except gas stations!! Our country was founded on Christian principles and Sunday was a day of rest, even for people who kept the Ten Commandments, yet weren't saved.

Today, we are faced with the choice of whether or not to shop on Sunday. You had no choice prior to the 1970's....it took no conviction. Now, if you don't shop on Sunday, it is a  choice, or a conviction.

There are some real benefits of not shopping on Sunday. Sunday is a day for fellowship and hospitality with believers. It is a day of rest...not necessarily a day for a nap, although when my children were little I usually took a nap on Sundays. If you plan ahead, you won't have to do your errands and grocery shopping on Sunday, you can take care of buying your food prior to the weekend so you are prepared. 

It is more common, now, for a person to have to work on Sunday. It has become harder and harder for lower paying jobs to give Sundays off, probably because retail stores are all open. If you have ever worked a job where you must work on Sundays, you will notice, you don't really take another day for rest. 

In reality, it doesn't work out that way. I used to work Sundays because I cared for Special Needs girls in an institutional setting. They lived there, so someone had to work. I was really (really) young and had no seniority. I can tell you from this experience that I never had a 'down'day. Since then, I not only choose to be a stay-at-home-mom, but I have chosen not to work on Sundays. I have enjoyed Making Sundays Special for my family.

Besides Sunday being a wonderful day for fellowship, Sunday is a great day for ministry. If you consider what your gifts are, you can easily find outlets to share them on Sundays. Whether it is teaching Sunday School, a ladies' study, or taking a meal to a shut-in, you can find a way to show the love of Christ after church. 

For our family, we participate in a brass band and choir, often visiting other churches on Sunday Evening. For us it is a full day of blessings. (Disclaimer: if you have little children, this may not be the season for you to be ministering outside of your family. Relax. Take a nap. Enjoy your family.)

Sunday is the best day of the week!! Since I have been Making Sunday Special, I have looked forward to Sundays each week. This is something I have chosen to do. I have found it to be a day when I can meditate on God's Word, or the messages from church without having a cluttered mind with how I must clean the house or grocery shop after I get home from church. I really think God has both our physical and mental health in mind when He gives instruction in the Bible to rest from our work on Sundays.

If you are younger than me, or not raised back when Sundays was considered a day of rest, you may be hearing this for the very first time. I accept where you are 'at' because that is what God does with us. If you just take one thing I am suggesting and try that for a month just to see if it Makes Sundays Special in your life, I will be thankful!!

Do you think 'Making Sunday Special' by choosing not to shop or clean could make a difference in your life??

I'd LOVE you to leave a comment!!

Since I live out 'in-the-sticks'... friends, like you are a long ways away!!

Sooo, I'd love you to follow me on: 

Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

In Christ Alone,

~Judith~

InLinkz.com

Love Intercedes

Marriage is for Keeps Series

Dare to love your husband. Dare to invest in the most awesome relationship that God has given you this side of heaven. You don't know how long you will have with your spouse before God takes one of you home. I dare you to have no regrets as you 100% do your part, unselfishly endeavoring to make your marriage last a life time.

I wasn't married long before I realized that we had some struggles in our marriage. What I didn't realize was that many of our problems were typical to many marriages. Sadly, many would give advice to separate or get divorced. Even Christians. Happily, we never took that advice and kept-on-keeping-on for what has turned into 33 years of marital bliss. Well, not quite.

For many years, I blamed my husband. It was his fault, you know. Or was it?! 

Instead, I learned to say, "Change Me, Oh Lord!!"

No matter how hard you try, you will likely not ever change your husband. Instead, I hope you take the Love Dare seriously, because if you do, you will likely be changed from the inside out.

I challenge you to read back over this series on 'Marriage is for Keeps' and purposefully carry out each dare.  If you do, your marriage will be affected in the weeks, months, or years to follow. I had been doing similar things in my marriage before I found this book. For me, nothing changed overnight but slowly and surely the depth and closeness in my marriage started to grow. 

One thing I have learned from raising children is that I cannot do anything in my own power and strength. As I have said before, I have failed in a myriad of ways until I knew that success is not of me but through the Lord Jesus Christ working in my life. Our marriage will not change and grow without something more powerful than anything else you have (The Love Dare, p. 77.) You will need a tool from your tool box!!

Effective prayer is the tool that you will need to tap into the Source that will change you and your marriage. You are not alone!!

Prayer really does work. It is powerful. A phenomenon. Unlimited. Amazing. You will not  be disappointed in the power of God working in your personal situation yielding results you never thought possible. Just remember, it didn't happen for me over night and may take longer than the immediate response we desire. It took a while for us to get ourselves into the mess we made and it takes time for God to work in our hearts to make the changes within that bring results.

Prayer for your husband:

• Pray from a humble heart: prayer works best that way!!
• Be in a right relationship with God and others: or your prayers go unheeded!!
• Confess your sins one to another: and pray for one another!!
• Turn your overwhelming insight of your husband's hidden faults into prayer: endless nagging is ineffective!!
• Turn your complaints into effective kneeling!!
• Stop ALL scolding and nagging: that is NOT what changes hearts!!

Talk to God instead in your prayer closet!!

• If your spouse in not saved: pray for salvation!!
• Pray for your husband's heart.
• Pray for his attitude.
• Pray for his leadership.
• Pray for his responsibilities.
• Pray for forgiveness (towards YOU) to replace bitterness.
• Pray for a breakthrough in your marriage.
• Pray for your hearts desire: love, honor, romance, intimacy to go to a deeper level. (The Love Dare: p. 75 & 76)

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." ~Philippians 4:6-7~

"Confess your faults one to another, and  pray one for another,  that ye may be healed. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. ~James 5:16~

Were you encouraged by these words today? Will you commit to praying for your husband? You will NOT regret your choice!!

 I'd LOVE you to leave a comment!!

Since I live out 'in-the-sticks'... friends, like you are a long ways away!!

Sooo, I'd love you to follow me on: 

Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

In Christ Alone,

~Judith~

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And here:

InLinkz.com

Gift of Friendship

"Two are better than one;

because they have heat: 

but how can one be warm alone?

And if one prevail against him,

two shall withstand him;

and a threefold cord is not quickly broken."

~Ecclesiastes 4:9-10~

Poems on Friendship

By Helen Steiner Rice

Friendship is a priceless gift

That can't be bought of sold,

But to have an understanding friend

Is worth far more than gold.

The world we live in can be harsh and unwelcoming, intolerant of our mistakes. God knew we would need friends to encourage us along the way. He knew we would need others to laugh with, sing with, dream with. He knew we would need comfort and support and loving-kindness. Cherish your friends; hold them close. They are very special people, for they do God's work in your life.

Across the years we've met in dreams

And shared each other's hopes and schemes,

We knew a friendship rich and rare

And beauty far beyond compare.

Then you reached out your arms for more,

To catch what you were yearning for.

But little did you think or guess

That one can't capture happiness

Because it's unrestrained and free,

Unfettered by reality.

We lock up our hearts

and fail to heed

The outstretched hand,

reaching to find

A kindred spirit

whose heart and mind

Are lonely and longing

to somehow share

Our joys and sorrows

and to make us aware

That life's completeness

and richness depends

On the things we share

with our loved ones

and friends.

"Love one another:

as I have loved you, 

that ye also love one another.

By this shall all men know

that ye are my disciples,

if ye have love one to another."

~John 13:34-35~

Thank you for your friendship

And your understanding of

The folks who truly love you

And the folks you truly love.

Friends and prayers are priceless treasures

Beyond all monetary measures,

And so I say a special prayer

That God will keep you in His care.

For the friends that we make

are life's gift of love,

And I think friends are sent

right from heaven above.

And thinking of you

somehow makes me feel

That God is love and He's very real.

I'd LOVE you to leave a comment!!

Since I live out 'in-the-sticks'... friends, like you are a long ways away!!

Sooo, I'd love you to follow me on: 

I sometimes post something that you won't find on my blog. 

Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

In Christ Alone,

~Judith~