Facebook and Graduation

Whelp! I've been on quite a hiatus in recent months. In the midst of moving from Louisville, KY to Santa Clarita, CA and preparing to graduate with my Master's in Biblical Counseling, I haven't had big chunks of time to sit down, edit pictures, and write much. I even skipped Benjamin's monthly post as we were smack-dab in the middle of packing and moving.

Also in the midst of not blogging, I decided to remove myself from the Facebook world. After lots of prayer, discussion with faithful friends, and a few helpful blog posts, I realized I was spending too much precious and valuable time browsing photos, writing on walls, and simply "checking facebook" for who knows what! It became somewhat of an addiction. I began to feel comforted by the continual "checking" and browsing. This post really helped me get a better understanding of my own heart when it came to this newfound "love." The author pointed out that we tend to "check" Facebook at our lowest moments and compare our lives with the perfect ones that we see on Facebook. (Who doesn't try to put their best foot forward?) Though I felt like I wasn't necessarily comparing myself with every status and photo I saw, I was wasting a great deal of time essentially becoming a busy body going from profile to profile in search of the latest "news" that my friends and acquaintances had to share (see girltalk blog's post on this here). So as I examined my heart and habits, I came to the conclusion that it just wasn't worth my time investing in this avenue of social media. Since then, Joshua and I have come together to create a family-type facebook page where we can keep in touch with family and friends and post pictures. We think this will be best for our goals as a couple and a family :)

~~~

Since arriving in CA, I managed to graduate with my Masters in Biblical Counseling! Yay! It's been a long time coming and I'm thankful to have this season of studies completed. Now on to continue studying the art of mommy-hood and homemaking for my 3 guys :)

(I have a beautiful life.)

I feel like there is just so much that I could write about since it has been so long. Days are long and busy and it has actually taken me almost a week to get this one post completed so I'll leave with this...God is doing great things in our family. He is proving Himself to be faithful in all circumstances and we are trusting Him! :)

Until next time, may I continue to seek first God's kingdom and will and may I fight harder and harder for the joy that is found in Christ Jesus!

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Think and Pray

Shalom!

What a good weekend! It started off with some good ol' Chick-fil-a on Friday with our "Buy a drink and fries, get a free sandwich" coupon, continued with some productivity towards school, followed by a great sermon at church about the story of Joseph and how his life points to the life of Jesus... All of this after a big ol' healthy helping of humble pie! {{sigh}} 

Humble pie.

No, but really. God has been doing some major renovations in this heart of mine! I am beyond thankful, though, for my wonderful husband who loves me enough to let me relax while he prepares a big slice of my favorite (well...) dessert. Joshua has been used numerous times to point out areas in my life that do not reflect biblical womanhood, let alone Christ-likeness, very well.

Well, this week's humble pie flavor was (drum roll, please)........... self-control, the tongue, and thoughtfulness! Yum!

After a series of events and responses, we pin-pointed something in my heart that needs some serious heart-makeover! Many places in Scripture, God exhorts believers to guard their tongues, hearts, and minds. In essence, He calls them to exercise self-control in all areas of life. Here are a few general examples of this command:

"...train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled." Titus 2:4-5

"...for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." 2 Timothy 1:7

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." Galatians 5:22-23

"A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls." Proverbs 25:28

There are others that I could mention, but these get the idea across that God wants us to be self-controlled. Period.

God has told us to be self-controlled, but He has also been pretty specific about a few areas that He desires us to have self-control in. Two areas in particular are our tongues and our emotions.

Here is where God is making it very clear that I'm not nearly as sanctified as I ought to be. But praise be to Him that He is a God who works in the hearts of those He loves. {{sigh}} 

I'm pretty quick to say what I'm thinking. I'm also pretty opinionated. Oh and I often wear my heart on my sleeve. All things that can get me into some serious trouble. After realizing that these are not fitting for a 26 year old wife and momma seeking to reflect redemption and biblical womanhood, I said, "well, how in the world am I supposed to change??" (So much for getting an MABC, huh? ;)) 

My precious husband is pretty much the greatest biblical counselor I know, just sayin'. He lead me straight to Scripture to help me better understand God's heart in this matter and how I can change for His glory. Here are some of the passages Joshua brought to my attention:

"When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly..." 1 Peter 2:23


"...let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious." 1 Peter 3:4

"The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things." Proverbs 15:28


"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh...If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:16, 25

What God taught me (and is still teaching me) is that I need to do a lot more thinking and a TON more praying before I open this trap of mine! When I am walking in the Spirit, I am better able to ponder how to respond to the circumstances I face and am better able to cultivate a spirit of kindness and gentleness to those God places in my life. If I am Spirit-filled and not walking in the flesh, my responses should begin to look more like Christ's than my old self. Jesus, my perfect example of self-control and Spirit-filled living, died a sinner's death for ME, never once shouting His opinion, arguing for His rights, or responding in foolishness. I really, really, really want to be more like my Lord! I want my responses to all things to be an outflow of my thankfulness for all that God is and all that He has done!

May God make me this kind of woman: She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. Proverbs 31:26

Here's a picture of my precious family:

My loves.

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