A Bouquet of Thanksgiving

 

I think that every woman, whether she is vocal about it or not, loves flowers. Every woman appreciates a beautiful bouquet of flowers or a rose bush in full bloom. We love to breathe in the sweet aroma of a particular flower. Or maybe, you are like me, and you love the flowers that bloom from a weed, on the side of the road, bringing a splash of colour to an otherwise ugly patch of dirt.

If you could envision that every blessing was a beautiful flower and that every flower was a different colour and type, uniquely special, and that you could gather them all together and give them to God with a heart of thanksgiving, wouldn’t it be a wonderful way to end your day?

Wouldn’t it be so much better than falling into bed, weary and worn, with a frown on your face and ungratefulness in your heart, words of complaint on your lips spilling out a few short words to God, asking him to help you sleep well and bless you the next day?

Did you know that God wants your gratitude? He wants your thankfulness. The Bible tells us that it is a good thing to give thanks.

Psalm 92:1 It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD,

 and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:

So many of us are struggling through difficult times at present, and we’re finding it hard to find things to be grateful for. All we see are problems. But if we would just open our eyes, and our hearts, we would find that God blesses us over and over, and often we don’t take any notice or stop to thank him.

If you took mental notes of all the little blessings God gives you throughout your day, and then, before you lay down your head onto your pillow at night, you took time to praise and thank him for each and every one, how long would it take you? And do you think it would crowd out the complaints and the worries and the stress?

One of my favourite authors said this,

 

“Is the gratitude that flows out of your life as abundant as the

grace that flows into your life?” N. DeMoss

 

So, is it? Is the gratitude as abundant as the grace?  Are we in a continual state of gratitude to the Lord? Do our lips overflow with praise to God as we think about all that he does and gives and forgives, and heals and comforts? Are we continually thanking and praising God for his goodness? Or are we only complaining?

True gratitude is not something that comes naturally, nor is it something that is given to us at our salvation. No! It’s a choice! In order for you to experience joy, you have to make a choice. A choice to be thankful. A choice to praise. Why do you think the verse in Psalms says thanksgiving is a sacrifice?

Psalm 116:17   I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD.

Because oftentimes it is! Often, we find that our emotions are controlling us, and we don’t ‘feel’ like being thankful. We don’t want to give God thanks for the situation we find ourselves in, and so we have a choice to make, and it is a sacrifice. We have to set aside what we are feeling in order to open our lips and give praise to God.

The journey to joy is not by getting something that we don’t have, but rather, by appreciating and being thankful for the things we do have.

We are given daily better than we deserve because of God’s mercy and love. God’s grace is so abundant, and he never ceases to bless us if we live for him.

There is ALWAYS something to be thankful for. Whether it’s a beautiful sunny day, or a shower of rain after a long dry spell, or a cup of coffee with a friend, 3 meals a day, a grandchild’s sweet little giggle, a bird’s song, a beautiful sunset, legs to walk, eyes to see, ears to hear.

We take so many things for granted, and we don’t see them for what they are. Blessings! Blessings straight from the hand of God!

Can I encourage you, and I want to join you in this endeavour, to keep your eyes and ears open throughout the day, and gather those beautiful flowers of blessings, one by one, into a lovely bouquet to lay at Jesus feet each night. Better still, stop and thank him right there, in the moment. Flower by flower. Blessing by blessing.

Gratitude to God will strengthen your faith and will bring you peace. As you praise him for his goodness to you, you will begin to feel the stresses melt away, the cares and troubles will fade from view as you focus on the good and beautiful, and life won’t feel so hard and heavy as you change your perspective and realise just how much you have to be thankful for.

Let the gratitude that flows out of your life be as abundant as the grace that flows in!

Psalm 150:6

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

 

Jillian Holmes 28.11.25

 

Illiterate or Aliterate? 

Which are you?

 

Many Christians today are not biblically illiterate; they are simply biblically aliterate.

Illiterate or aliterate. What’s the difference?

Illiterate means that you lack the ability to read and write.

Aliterate means you are able to read but you just choose not to.

So, illiterate means you can’t read and aliterate means you can, you are just unwilling.

Where am I going with this?

In today’s Christian circles and in the world around me, I see more and more a community of both believers and non-believers that are aliterate.

It’s not that they can’t read, they just don’t want to. And by read, I mean read more than a few lines on a meme, or a short summary of a news article.

I have found that in the past few years, my attention span has shortened, and I constantly fight the urge to scroll over reading a book as I lie in bed at night.

When did this change happen? I used to be an avid night reader. Well, I can tell you, it didn’t happen overnight. It was a gradual lengthening of screen time and lessening of book time.

I don’t have any trouble reading a theological study book or commentary or topical book on Christian living, and I will pour diligently over these during the day as I study and prepare lessons to teach, but as my head hits the pillow, a certain laziness creeps over me and I reach for my phone, while underneath it lies a stack of half-read books.

I am not proud of this, and I feel like the Apostle Paul writing of the fight he faced, “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Romans 7:19”

Now, I’m not saying that scrolling on your phone is sin, but I do feel that we could make better use of our time more often than not.

With the addition of technology into our lives and screens staring us in the face everywhere we look, it's hard to make the time to sit down and read a good book. To let yourself be taken to another world through your imagination, to see characters brought to life through the print on a page. To dive into the stories we find in the Bible. Or maybe to be encouraged, comforted or even rebuked and convicted by a book written by a Godly author hoping to help you in your Christian walk.

I know that with all the amazing advances in technology nowadays, we have the ability to tap away at our screens and read straight from our handy little devices, and I'm not saying that it’s a bad thing to make use of. What I'm getting at is, that even on our screens, we seem to have such short attention spans that we can't seem to sit still and focus for long enough to read anything of any length.

When was the last time you read a book? A whole book? Not just portions of a book. Maybe even an article of more than 500 words.

More to the point, when was the last time you read a book of the Bible? All the way through?

We have in our hands God's instruction book for life, and yet we flounder around looking for answers to life’s questions, when all the while the answers are sitting right in front of us, on our bedside tables, gathering dust.

I’m worried that as Christians, many are not only Bible illiterate, knowing little about the truths, concepts, doctrines and stories it holds, but they are also rapidly becoming Bible aliterate. They can read, they just don’t want to. They don’t see the need to.

Many Christians today are too content with getting fed by their pastors, their small group leaders, their social media Bible teachers that they neglect reading and studying the Word of God for themselves.

In Pauls epistle to Timothy, he exhorted him to pay attention and to make time for something important. Reading.

1 Timothy 4:13 KJV - Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.

This idea of giving attendance to not only means be devoted to or taking heed but it is also defined as being given to or addicted to. That’s an interesting thought. Paul exhorts Timothy to be addicted to reading.

There are many people in the world who are addicted to reading, but the reading they desire is not the type Paul is instructing Timothy in.

We find an interesting verse in the book of Revelation.

Revelation 1:3 KJV - Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Here, reading is associated with hearing and keeping or obeying.

In Isaiah 34, we see a command to seek out the book of the Lord and read it.

In Exodus 24, we see the book of the covenant read to the people.

In Joshua, we see the words of the law read before all the congregation.

We see books read, laws read, letters read, prophecies read. I counted no less than 80 times the word read or a form of it mentioned in the Bible.

Reading is important. And more important than any other book, the Bible is to be read over and over.

Can I exhort you that the more you read the Bible, the more you’ll love the author. The more you learn of God, the more you will love him. And the more you love him, the more you’ll want to please him and the more you want to please him, the more you’ll serve him, and the more you serve him, the more you will build his kingdom.

Every year, I write down a list of all the books I’ve read and each year I try and improve on it.

Over the years, I have lost the taste I once had for secular books and so it takes me a lot longer to make it through a book as I have to think harder as I read, but what a blessing it is not only to read the pages of Scripture but also to be blessed and encouraged by great men and women of God who he has used to teach me to understand my Bible better.

Can I challenge you to resolve growing your reading attention to work at span? Force yourself to spend time in the Word of God daily. At first it may be difficult, but the more you discipline yourself to do it, the more you’ll want to do it. Your desire will grow. And as time goes on, you’ll find that there is not enough time in the day to do all the reading and studying you would like to do as God speaks through his Word.

I find it a sad state of affairs that so many people in our churches are disinterested in reading good, wholesome, Christian books or biographies of men and women from the past that have so much experience and insight into the Christian walk and can teach us so many things that help point us to Christ and becoming more like him.

Before I go any further, I just want to say that if you’ve read this far, you’ve just read 1247 words! I’d love for you to leave a comment on my page or on this blog letting me know what you’ve done to help discipline yourself to read more. We are to do this Christian life together and if we can encourage each other in this simple thing, then it’s a step in the right direction.

Just think of how many books of the Bible you could read if you only spent 10 minutes a day reading! Finishing a whole book is not accomplished in one big meal, but in many small meals over time. A nibble here, a nibble there.

And as we chew over what we read, it changes us.

We can never use the excuse of lack of time if we are guilty of scrolling on our phones. (Please know that I’m preaching to myself here)

If you have time to scroll, you have time to read!

And the best book to read is the Bible!

2 Timothy 3:16-17 KJV - All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Let 2026 be the year that books come alive again.

And keep the Bible at the top of the stack!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s time to Lean In

 

There’s an interesting expression bouncing around in the world today. “Lean in.”

You hear it thrown around regularly in a variety of contexts. What it means, in a nutshell, is to embrace, to fully engage with, or to actively pursue something.

“Leaning into” something implies a proactive and enthusiastic approach to something rather than a passive, cautious or hesitant approach.

“Leaning into” something can also imply a willingness to face challenges or difficulties head-on and make the most of the situation. It’s about being bold and unreserved in your approach to a particular part of life. It’s persevering in spite of risk or difficulty.

So, how does all this relate to us in our Christian walk today?

What do you do when you’re in a season of life you don’t want to be in? You may be right now, living through a season you are not enjoying. You may be facing difficulties, unwanted, insurmountable, frightening and confusing.

You may be frustrated with the story God is writing. And in your frustration, you hear his voice saying, “lean in, my child, lean in”. Perhaps the very season you’re going through is an important season, and you’re not supposed to miss it. You’re supposed to LEAN IN.

We make our vision boards, whether figuratively or physically, and what we put on them often looks nothing like what we end up going through. We plan out our lives in neatly organized boxes of allotted times and then comes an unexpected season.

These may be seasons where we feel unnoticed, and limited and fruitless, where doors seem to shut more than they open, where we feel forgotten, our talents wasted or invisible. Or maybe they are seasons of hardship through ill health or death of a loved one, or busyness that leads to physical and mental exhaustion.

Sure, these seasons were not on our vision boards, but is complaining going to make it any better? What if these months or years have more purpose and meaning than we imagined?

What if by not leaning in, we miss something great?

What if by not willingly facing the challenge head on, making the most of the situation, being enthusiastic and boldly embracing the season, we miss what it is God is trying to teach us?

What if God wants you to lean in? What if he wants you to trust him more fully? What if he wants surrender? Surrender to his will. Surrender to what he has called you to.

What if he wants you to embrace fully the season you’re in by giving yourself wholeheartedly to the task at hand, doing the best you can, for his glory, even when you don’t know the outcome or understand how to navigate it.

What is it that God has called you to do? Lean in. In spite of the risk or the difficulty. Lean in. Despite the darkness of the path ahead. Lean in.

When David was waiting to be King, his season of hiddenness and those long years of discouragement, living life on the run, were times of growth. They were times to lean in.

While Moses was a shepherd in the desert, a hidden season, before he would lead the people out from Egypt, it was time to lean in.

Joseph, sold as a slave, forgotten in a prison for doing the right thing, used his season to lean in.

And even the Lord Jesus himself spent 30 years of his life, in obscurity. Of his thirty-three years walking on this earth, only three of them were in public ministry. No crowds. No public platform. No popularity. As far as we know, he was a simple carpenter’s son, hidden from the world until God’s appointed time. He leaned in to his season.

I think we would all do well to learn to lean in. We all too often spend whole seasons of our lives discontent, discouraged, frustrated and angry at God, all the while missing out on what he has for us in that season. We don’t actively look for the lessons. We don’t give ourselves to him to be used for his glory. We don’t lean in.

These seasons of our lives are there to refine us. To make us more like Christ. To build into us Godly character. They are there to deepen our faith. To teach us reliance on God. To grow our spiritual roots and anchor us.

Embrace the season you’re in by:

Doing the best you can with what God has given you. (Colossians 3:23)

Working wholeheartedly and walking joyfully towards his calling on your life. (Philippians 3:14)

Being patient with the process and the length of the season. God knows better than you how long he needs you to stay in it. (Psalm 27:14)

Look for the lessons along the way. Be alert to what he wants to teach you. (Proverbs 3:13)

Seek his face daily and ask him for guidance. (Proverbs 3:5,6)

Develop a heart of gratitude, taking time to thank him regularly for everything. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Be content in the season. Despite what you feel or whatever the circumstances, stay content! (Hebrews 13:5)

Trust that God knows what he’s doing and is doing what is best for you as he works to mold you more into his likeness. (Job 23:10)

Don’t let a so-called bad season of your life determine your future attitude. Use it as a growing period.

You’re not being buried, you’re being planted.

If you don’t resist God’s hand, if you lean in, you will see fruit.

Embrace the season and lean in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step up and become an influencer!

 

You can be an influencer! You should be an influencer!

Yes. I just said that. Now, before you go thinking that I’ve lost all my marbles, and decided to take the blog in another direction, please, calm down and read on.

I wrote on this topic a few years back and I feel like bringing it up again for those, like myself, who need to hear it again, or for the first time.

My jumbled thoughts began bouncing around in my easily distracted, slightly scrambled brain and got me thinking about this idea of being an influencer.

This word is tossed around so much in our present day it got me thinking, what if we, as Christians, began to consciously, wholeheartedly, determinedly and steadfastly, set our eyes upon the goal of becoming influencers for God?

Before I go into more on this subject, I want to refresh your mind as to what an influencer is, in the world’s definition.

Firstly, an influencer is someone who has the power to affect the decisions of others, because of his or her authority, knowledge, position or relationship with their audience. Secondly, an influencer is someone who affects or changes the way other people behave, and they have the ability to influence opinions. Thirdly, an influencer is a person who is paid by a company to show and promote that company’s products and services on social media, encouraging others in their sphere of influence to buy them.

With those thoughts in mind, switch your thinking caps on, focus and be ready to be influenced by me to influence you to be influencers for God!

Did you know that we are all influencers? When we decide to trust Jesus as our personal Saviour and ask Him into our lives, we become influencers. Not just influencers, but ambassadors for Christ. Official representatives, messengers, commissioned by God to share the good news.

2 Corinthians 5:20 - Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.

As an ambassador for Christ, we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the precious gospel message.

1 Thessalonians 2:4 - But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.

As we go through our lives here on this earth, we are representing another kingdom. The heavenly kingdom where our citizenship lies. And we need to take the message of God’s love to everyone we meet.  We need to be Godly representatives of the heavenly kingdom. But we have to be wise.

Matthew 10:16 - Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

This world is full of wolves, and we are sheep. So, we must be wise. God is longing for His children to be good influencers. Wise ambassadors. People with clean testimonies, pure hearts and minds, Godly character, love, hope and joy.

As Christians, we are watched by the world. They are watching and judging all we do. We can choose to have a Godly influence over them and our fellow Christians, or we can choose to bring dishonour to God and have a bad testimony that brings shame upon God’s holy name.

The Bible reminds us that we are salt and light. Now that’s definitely an entirely different sermon on its own for another day. But let’s read what the Bible says.

Matthew 5:13-16 - Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

We need to be salt, making the world thirsty for the living water. And we are to be light. A light in the darkness. Sharing the hope that lies within us. Letting God’s glory shine through us. When people see us, let it be God they see.

In the world, an influencer is all about getting attention. They want the glory and all eyes on them. Sadly, what starts as a small hobby or something to pass the time, can quickly become an obsession and a place of self-gratification. More likes. More great comments. More tags. More follows. More more more.

But as an influencer for God, we need to be turning all eyes upon Him. We need to be continually turning the focus back on the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to be influencing those around us to turn to God.

We can become ‘someone who has the power to affect the decisions of others’.  By our testimony, we can help show others the way that in turn, Lord willing, will see them come to know Christ on a personal level. We can ‘affect the way others behave’, just by setting a Godly example. Lives are changed yes, by God, but He allows us to have a part in that by being an example. Now, we may not be selling anything or encouraging anyone to buy a product, but we can encourage others to learn about the marvellous gift that God so freely gives to those who will accept it.

So, how can we be influencers of God? Allow me to share with you 5 ways.

We need to be examples. Good and Godly examples.

1.       Be an example in our speech

 

Our words need to reflect the love of Christ and be edifying and thankful, full of grace and seasoned with salt. Your words are important. What you say matters. (and how you say it)

 

Ephesians 5:4 - Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

 

Ephesians 4:29 - Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

 

Colossians 4:6 - Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.

 

2.       Be an example in how we act (our testimony)

 

Our conversation, or testimony, our manner of life, our conduct, needs to be a good and Godly example. We can’t expect to be influencers for God if we act like the world.

1 Peter 1:15 - But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;

3.       Be an example in love

 

Now, I know this is a lengthy and well-known passage, but can I encourage you to read it all the way through? We need to be reminded about the importance of love in our Christian walk. We need to show love for others. Without love, our efforts are worthless. A tinkling cymbal.

 

Interestingly enough, the Greek word for tinkling is Alalazo which means to ring loudly, or clang. So, it’s not a nice little ching, ching sound. It’s a clanging sound! An annoying, loud sound. Hmm, our words are annoying without love. But so are our actions. Without love, there is little profit.

 

1 Corinthians 13:1-8 - Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

 

4.       Be an example in faith

 

People need to see our faith, not just hear about it. They need to see our faith in action. We need to practice what we preach. We need to share what we believe, and we need to live what we believe. We need to live out our faith.

 

James 2:14-17 - What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

 

5.       Be an example in our pursuits

 

Jeremiah 29:13 - And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all our heart.

 

What is it you pursue? The praise of men? Attention? Money? Fame? The Lord wants us to pursue Him with all our hearts. He promises that if we seek Him, we shall find Him. It’s not wrong to have goals, but we need to make sure that they are the goals that God would have us have.

 

We are all influencers. In some way or another. We are influencing those around us on a daily basis. Whether it be our families, our co-workers, our ‘friends’ on social media or our church family. Any number of people come across our path as we go about our business, and any one of them can be influenced by us. The attitude that emanates from us is often more powerful than our words.

 

To honour God with our influence, we need to start by remembering who we are and who God is. Put God in His rightful place, high and lifted up, and us, in our proper place, in a place of humility. Remembering that we came from the dust of the earth and God in His love and mercy, came down to this earth to rescue our wretched souls from eternal damnation. He doesn’t owe us anything, and yet, He chose to extend to us His free gift of salvation. Get the right perspective and be content to live in the shadows, letting God get all the glory.

 

John 3:30 - He must increase, but I must decrease.

 

Be on the lookout to always be pointing others to Christ and away from ourselves. The influencers of this world want all the attention upon themselves, but God wants us to give Him all the glory and be humble and meek.

 

Don’t compare yourself to others around you, or those you see online. Be content to serve where God has placed you. In the town, in the church, in the family He has put you in. Don’t worry about what others are doing, just concern yourself with what you’re doing and where God would have you.

 

Be an influence on those in whose circles God has put you in. If God gives you the opportunity to share with a wider audience, then grab hold of it with both hands and pray that God would keep you humble and that you will be able to be an influencer of good in other’s lives.

 

And lastly, remain in the vine.

 

John 15:5-8 - I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

 

The Bible is clear that if we remain in the vine, diligently seeking His heart and His wisdom, remaining close to Him, we will bear fruit. Much fruit.

 

I pray that as you’ve read through this post, that you have been challenged to be an influencer for God. I want to encourage you to take seriously this idea of letting your light shine forth into a dark world, influencing those around you for good.

 

Let’s encourage each other, as brothers and sisters in Christ, to be the kind of influencer that God would have us be.

 

1 Corinthians 10:31 - Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

 

We are here to influence the world, rather than to be influenced by the world!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you care more about your hair?

 

 

This morning, I was reminded of something I had written 4 years ago, and I felt led to repost it, unedited and just as rough as it was when I wrote it what seems like an eternity ago. It is still just as relevant today!

 

The world has enough women who know how to do their hair.

    It needs women who know how to do hard and holy things.      Anne Voskamp

 

In our world today, there is so much pressure on women to make themselves more beautiful on the outside. You Tube and Instagram scream at us through thousands of videos, to promote ourselves, to use their products in order that we can look more attractive. And there are countless hair and make-up tutorials.

Now, I’m not saying that you can’t or shouldn’t watch them, as sometimes they can be helpful for information on which products to use or how to style your particular hair length or texture.

What I want to say is that the heart is so much more important.

And as the quote says, we have enough women telling us how to do our hair, but what about some women who know how to separate from the world, walk and talk a Godly lifestyle, glorify God with their testimony and lead others to Christ through their Godly witness as they show God’s love?

The world tries to tell us that they will love us if we are beautiful. But you are beautiful because you are already loved. You were made in God’s image.

Jeremiah 31:3 The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

Psalm 139:14 KJV - I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

We don’t need the world to tell us who we are and how we should look. We need women who are willing to stand up for what is right. We need women who are happy with how God made them. We need women willing to sit at Jesus feet, as Mary did, and learn of him.

We don’t need more women telling us how to look more attractive, we need more women telling us how to live our lives glorifying to God. We need women who are not afraid to dig into the Word of God and find Godly examples to follow and then share what they learn with others.

We need women who are walking closely with the Lord, showing by their testimony, what God can do and has done and will do.

1 Samuel 16:7b …for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

The world looks at the outside and judges by what it sees there, but God is looking for women with strength of character, borne out of hardship and trial and a life spent trusting the Lord. He looks right through and into the heart. He sees beyond our immaculate hairstyles and flawless make up. He sees the beauty or the ugliness within.

1 Peter 3:3-4 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

I recently listened to a series of lessons on having a meek and quiet spirit and what a conviction it was to my heart. It’s definitely not something that comes naturally. Meekness and quietness. No, it’s something that has to be worked on every day of our lives.

We all take some time, whether a lot or a little, to do our hair each morning. We make ourselves look presentable, whether it means straightening or curling or washing, or in my case, putting it in a ponytail and covering it up with a cap in a matter of seconds.

It doesn’t matter and I am not here to judge either way. But I do want to remind you that God is looking deeper than the surface. In order for our lives to count for something, we have to have a desire to grow spiritually and give God all the glory for what he does in our lives.

That means we need to spend time in God’s Word. We need to spend time in prayer. We need to spend time encouraging a sister in the Lord, coming alongside and being a friend and a help. We may need to give up some things that are drawing us away from what is Godly and holy. We may need to separate from some things.

We may need to take less time on our outward appearance so that we can make more time to focus on our heart condition.

It's not easy making time in our busy schedules to read and pray. It takes time to write that text or make that phone call to encourage a friend in need. It often means we have to neglect something that we may have thought important. But, if it has eternal value, then it is all worth it. If it means we don’t look as ‘together’ as we usually do, but God is pleased and glorified by our actions, then so be it. We have to do hard things at times to bring glory to God, but it is to be our all-consuming goal in life. Giving glory to God.

The beauty on the outside fades with time, but Godly character gets more and more beautiful as it matures and grows and blossoms into something God can use.

2 Corinthians 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

So, if I can encourage you in anything, please remind yourself of the way God looks at you. He’s looking on the inside. Don’t neglect your physical appearance, but don’t let it become your focus.

Let’s join together and become women of God, who are willing to do hard and holy things. Let’s encourage each other and support each other as we live our lives and strive to bring glory to God, the giver of all good things. He loves you unconditionally, and a bad hair day is not going to change that!

 

An added exhortation:

 

We need women who are more concerned about their hearts than their hair! 

Women who have a desire to study the word of God. 

Women who are not content to be spoon fed. 

Women who want more than just the pink passages of the Bible.  

Women who are not satisfied with a watered-down gospel and a social club type ladies meeting. 

Women who have a holy curiosity about the harder, deeper passages of scripture. 

Women who are not content with a sweet little devotional reading each morning.  

Women who lead their children by example.

Women who have enough Bible literacy to be able to converse with their husbands and others about Bible truths. 

Women who will lead other women and teach them how to grow in their spiritual walk.  

Women who love God and their families with a fierce passion. 

Women who want to serve, not just be served. 

 

Rise up, women! You have a divine calling!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cure is Eating

 

In my last post "Lost in Conversation", I asked the question, “When was the last time you got lost in conversation with God?” I talked about how spending time with God leads to a passion and desire to spending more time in his presence.

I encouraged you not to wait for ‘feelings’ to develop before getting serious about reading and studying God’s Word.

If you have lost your spiritual appetite, then eat! The cure for starvation, is eating!

The truth is, the passion and excitement for spending time in God’s presence will grow when you choose to lay aside how you feel about it, and just do it!

We like to live life based around our feelings. If we don’t feel it, then we don’t do it.

Aren’t you glad God doesn’t live like this? God’s closeness is not based on your feelings; it’s based on his faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV - It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Verse after verse in God’s Word declare God’s faithfulness to us. We never have to be concerned that his trustworthiness, dependability, steadfastness, and loyalty will fail. God is always will be faithful.

Our feelings won’t change that.

I want to speak to those of you who have lost your spiritual appetite. I want to speak to those of you who have lost your desire to be in the Word of God on a daily basis. Those of you who find reading the Bible a chore. Those of you who find praying just another thing you ‘have’ to do as a Christian.

It’s sad, but it happens. Every one of us goes through periods in our lives when we don’t ‘feel’ as close to God. Maybe we’ve become slack in our Bible reading. Or maybe we don’t have the passion we once had to diligently study his Word.

SPOILER ALERT: Just because you don’t ‘feel’ close to God, doesn’t mean he’s moved! He hasn’t. You have! He’s still there, faithfully awaiting your return to him.

The cure for your lack of spiritual appetite is to eat! It sounds kind of silly, but it really is that simple.

If you are not hungry for the Word of God, it’s not because you’ve eaten so much that you are satisfied. No. The lack of hunger is more than likely because you have nibbled so long at the world’s table, that you are no longer hungry for the things of God.

If you are feeling little desire for God, take a moment to consider your diet.

Ask any health-conscious person to explain to you how it is that the more junk food you eat, the less hungry you’ll be for the healthier options and the less room you’ll have for them. But the more you eat of wholesome, nutritious foods, the more you’ll desire to fill up on them.

So, what are you eating? What is your diet like?

If you are filling your soul and mind with too much scrolling, too much entertainment, too much of what the world has to offer in the way of reading, viewing and listening, you are not going to leave much room for the good things God has to offer.

If you consistently feed your heart on the wrong things, the more anaemic your fruit will be. You won’t produce the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22,23) that God wants to grow in you. And you won’t desire the right things.

The Bible tells us that we are blessed when we have a hunger for God and his righteousness.

Matthew 5:6 KJV - Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

It also tells us to seek God first (Matthew 6:33). We are told that God rewards our seeking (Hebrews 11:6).

Many times in the Psalms, we see David speaking of the thirst he had for God. (Psalm 42:2; Psalm 63:1; Psalm 143:6).

And you know what the hungering and thirsting after God did for those who sought him? It increased their desire. Their appetite. It helped to remove their spiritual apathy.

So, what do you do when you have lost your spiritual appetite? If you have lost your desire for God, then resolve to flood your soul with his truth until your appetite returns.

The more you pray, the more you’ll want to pray. The more you read his Word, the more you’ll want to read it. The more you study, the more you’ll want to study. The more you feed yourself, the hungrier you’ll get.

The cure is eating!

Now, I don’t want to leave you simply feeling seen and exposed. I want to give you some practical tips on how you can gain back the appetite you’ve lost.

Remember the cure for starvation is eating. So, stop the hunger pangs, and EAT!

One of the first things you need to do is to be real! Be honest with God. Open up your heart to him and ask his forgiveness. Lay it all out on the table. Reveal your apathy to him. Tell him how you feel. (Psalm 62:8) You won’t scare him away by being open and honest with him.

Next, if you’ve stopped praying, then start again! Don’t fear that God will laugh at your feeble attempts to talk to him. He longs to hear from you. Your prayers don’t need to be intellectual and articulate. Let your prayers flow from your heart in words that even a child could understand. Don’t stop praying. Remember, the more you pray, the more you’ll want to.

Stay in the Word. Get back into reading God’s Word daily. If you have neglected your Bible for so long you have become unfamiliar, then read the Psalms. Read through the Gospels. Remind yourself of God’s goodness to you and to his people. Don’t let even a day go by without reading a verse or two and meditating on it. The Word of God will do more for your soul then any self-help book, motivational speaker, daily affirmation or inspirational quote will ever do!

And lastly, get around God’s people! If you have isolated yourself and shunned Godly, Chrisitan community, then you need to force yourself to get back into it! We were never meant to live our Christian lives alone. We were built for community.

It’s God’s idea for us to live in community with others. He is a relational God who designed us in his image. Built within us is a pattern for experiencing intimate relationship with God and then expressing that love to others.

It is so important to be grounded in the life of a local church. It’s where discipleship takes place, compassion, friendship, encouragement, accountability, exhortation, prayer, mentoring, shepherding, and teaching.

So, if you have lost your spiritual appetite, then gain it back by eating!

Be real with God. Pray regularly. Stay in the Word. Get around God’s people.

And watch your appetite grow. The more you eat, the hungrier you’ll get.

Jeremiah 29:13 KJV - And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.