Category Archives for Biblical Womanhood

In Your Presence

I need frequent reminders of who you are and who I am in you

So I run to your presence to be reminded

I cannot afford business to suck me in, pulling me away from you

The stakes are just too high

You said you will keep me in perfect peace

And it’s true, that’s if my thoughts are fixed on you

I know life and all its duties are loudly calling me

But I must,

I MUST prioritize being in your presence to hear your still small voice

Your presence is the sweetest thing I know

I have tasted and seen that you are good

All the time

And all the time you are good!

You equip me for the battle

You comfort me when I feel beat down and yes your joy gives me strength when I am depleted.

You keep me from falling when temptations try to pull me away

You are my daily bread, giving me exactly what I need from day to day

Simply put;

In your presence I find

All

I

WILL

EVER

NEED

It only makes sense for me to make seeking your face a priority

 

Question for reflections?

  1. Do you make excuses for why you can’t spend time with the Lord?
  2. Have you made spending time with Him a priority?
  3. Do you see a difference in your day when you slow down and give God time in prayer and reading the word?
  4. How do you think your life would be different if you were constantly seeking the face of the Lord?

Speaking the word of God over your child

I want to encourage you to really consider the words that are coming out of our mouth when speaking to your children.  It is easy to become careless with our words.  However, a big part of parenting is blessing (affirming) our children.  Speaking the word of God over them is the best affirmation.  As I speak the word over them, it shapes their identity and they recognize who they are in Christ. Blessing my children with the word of God also combats the schemes of the enemy and cancels every curse.

Below is a brief worksheet that I created to get the process started to encourage you to speak life (blessings) over your children.  Take some time to fill out this worksheet and reflect on the suggested verses. Pray and ask the Lord to help you prioritize spending time with in prayer and the study of His word so that He can fill your mouth with what to say as you parent.  Be sure to visit this link for suggestions on scripture that you can speak/pray over your children.

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BLESSING OUR CHILDREN BY SPEAKING THE WORD OF GOD OVER THEM

 

Scripture tells us that _________and ___________ are in the _________of the _________(Proverbs 18:21).

Whose words should you speak over your children?

John 6:63 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Can we speak life (the word of God) over our children?  Can we decree blessings over them if we don’t know the word?

Briefly write down your game plan for studying God’s word starting this week.  Consider the following questions as you create your plan.

  1. What time are you most alert to study God’s word?
  2. How much time per day do you commit to studying God’s word?
  3. What passages will you focus on to begin your study?

 

Let’s get personal

On a normal day, what are some of the things you say to your children (when you are angry with them, when their behavior displeases you, when they interrupt you)?

 

 

What are your biggest areas of struggle as a parent?  In what ways have your children challenged you?

 

What are some specific scriptures you can speak over your children to combat these issues?

Don’t forget to visit this site to get ideas on scriptures you can pray over your children. Be blessed!

WHY SHOULD I FAST?

Fasting…that word that most of us Christians don’t want to hear.  I will confess fasting doesn’t make the list for the top 10,000 thigs I LOVE TO DO.  However as I tell my children about eating organ meats; you won’t always like doing what is good for you but you still have to do it.  My flesh loves to be in charge, it loves to showcase itself.  However there is nothing like a good dose of fasting to put my flesh in its rightful place.  So what does the bible have to say about fasting and why and when should I do it?  Check out this article for some answers. Fasting not only has great spiritual benefits, but for a bonus it also helps us on a natural level.  Read this article for some of the health benefits associated with fasting. The process of fasting can sometimes be very difficult  but I never regret doing it. In the end, I receive mental clarity and feel  spiritually energized .  I want to encourage you to incorporate fasting as you seek to grow closer to God.  Be blessed!

 

Comfortable in my own skin…becoming who I was created to be

 

I am learning

Learning to become comfortable in my own skin.

I have been on a journey and have hit many bumps.

It hasn’t been an easy process. I have had to fight even when I felt like I had no strength.

For as long as I can remember I have tried to fit into a certain mold.

Revelation:  I wasn’t created to fit, I was created to fly.

Free people not only dance but they fly…they soar.

Flight 3

The human heart is not only desperately wicked but it is painfully fragile.

BUT JESUS

This heart of mine has experienced deep wounds.

Wounds that went a lot deeper than I previously thought.

BUT JESUS

My perception of who He is was jaded so consequently I didn’t know me. I didn’t know that I was fully accepted.

But I now know Him and He is showing me who I was created to be…. did I mention I am learning to become comfortable in my own skin?

The process is not always easy.

I have to fight in prayer like crazy to have a renewed mind…I am accepted, no masks or performance necessary.

Yeah comfortable in my own skin.

anika praying

I am experiencing a new level of blood bought freedom because chains don’t look good on me.

Who knew that there was a warrior underneath all of this?

Who knew that from all that pain compassion for the broken would be birth?

A compassion that stirs real intercession.

Who knew that pride would fall to the wayside when I stopped trying to be “perfect” so that I can be “liked.”

Releasing pride has given way to humility and humility opens the door to His grace.

There is no turning back. I chose to move forward into more freedom, becoming who I was created to be.

Yeah comfortable in my own skin.

How about you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

How do I introduce Jesus to my children?

There is a lot that pulls at me but when I parent, I have to prioritize eternity.

I must

This is simply not an option

I want my love for Jesus to be contagious

I want my days to be spent bringing Him glory even in the mundane.

I feel these children watching my every action, weighing them more than they do my words.

 

I am learning it’s beyond taking them to church and reading them bible stories so that they can know the facts.

Most of us have the right answers, but do we live it?

Beyond knowledge of the word, I want them to have a relationship with the word that became flesh.

More than anything I want them to know Jesus as their own.

This is not automatic.  I must be intentional.  I can’t give to my children what I don’t have.  Every day I have an option; do I seek His face or seek to do my will?

Seems like a simple answer but life has a way of complicating simple matters

If I let it

These last 12 years of parenting has taught me that children are more discerning than I previously thought. They can smell a hypocrite from miles away.

I tell them to get in their word, but do they see me on my laptop more than they see me reading my bible?

I tell them to forgive but do I hold on to anger towards their dad or towards them?

I tell them to pray and bring their worries to the Lord but do they see me on the phone more than they see me on my knees?

I tell them to have self-control but do they see me eating my worries away?

I tell them to be a servant but do they hear me murmur and complain about all the domestic chores I am CALLED to do?

I tell them to fully obey but do they see me practicing selective obedience because I am good and grown?

Honest questions that deserve honest answers.  And did I mention, a hypocrite can do some serious damage to innocent bystanders.

How do I steward these 6 blessings the Lord has given me?

The call of motherhood is weighty. It can be sobering to think that my actions can either draw them or turn them away from Jesus.

MY ACTIONS CAN DETERMINE WHERE THEY SPEND ETERNITY!

Yes, I am fully aware that I can’t chose Jesus for my children but my actions can make the choice more appealing.

So I pray real hard

For grace to mother the way my Father wants me to.

For the right focus to seek the Kingdom of God first and then relax knowing that all these others things will be added!

For the discipline to push the distractions to the side , silencing the unnecessary noise so that I can hear and respond to His still small voice(Social media and all her kinfolks, relationships that pull me away from Jesus, thoughts that are trespassing on God’s property…my Mind …just to name a few).

Yes Ma’am I have been called to something big…I have to introduce Jesus to my children!

 

Inconvenient Hospitality

 

I love people. I love having company.  I love playing hostess.    I love to cook.  I love the idea of breaking bread together and having great conversation.  I love all of the aforementioned….when it is convenient.  I struggle with being hospitable when I have to change my plans, when I am not prepared, tired, or quite honestly I just don’t feel like it.  I don’t like to be inconvenienced.  But the Lord is challenging me to be hospitable even when the stage of perfection is removed and there is no home cooked meal to make me look good, no tidy house, and a tired hostess.    True hospitality is recognizing a need and being so connected to God that I am willing to meet it regardless of the inconvenience.  True hospitality is not about me as the hostess looking good.   It is more about me glorifying Jesus through my actions, through my willingness to hit pause with my schedule to meet your needs. It is a tall order I know, but Jesus never requires anything of me that He himself has not modeled.  He sets the bar high but it is totally attainable by His grace and my willingness to yield.    I am also learning that hospitality goes beyond the four walls of my home.

Luke 9: 10-17 speaks of how Jesus was trying to slip away quietly with His disciples who had just returned from doing ministry but the crowds followed Him.  The part that blew me away and convicted me was verse 11.  It says the crowd found and followed him AND HE WELCOMED THEM.  Not only did He welcome them but He taught them and healed those who were sick. Wow and double wow.   It is in this same passage that Jesus does the miracle of feeding the five thousand.  After Jesus was done teaching and healing, the disciples who were no doubt exhausted from their ministry efforts told Jesus,” Let us wrap this party up. We don’t have any food. It is late and we are tired. Send them to the nearby towns and villages to handle their own needs.  After all, they should be good with all the ministering that you just did.” But Jesus, my Jesus pushes the envelope and responds, “No I am not going to send them away, YOU FEED THEM!”  WHAT?!  The disciples responded to Jesus, “Umm Jesus that is kind of impossible, we don’t have enough for this massive crowd, all we have is five loaves and two fish and there is five thousand men.”

I know my response would have been like the disciples. However Jesus’ willingness to show hospitability opened the door for His father to multiply the little He had so that the needs of the multitude was met.  Amazing!  Not only did they have enough but there were left overs.  Yes my God is an exceedingly abundantly type of God!

I want to be an instrument in the hands of my Father.  I want to be aware that when I am willing to be hospitable (even when it is inconvenient) that God can work a miracle in the lives of those that I extend myself to.  Again, remember hospitability is not limited to the four walls of your home.  Perhaps Jesus is asking you to pause to minister to that person you meet in the grocery store because they are in need of a miracle and they need to see Jesus.  Maybe you need to abandon the idea of waiting until your house looks perfect before you invite that individual the Lord has laid on your heart over to dinner.  Maybe your lack of finances is an issue, have you considered praying and asking the Lord to multiply the little you have to meet the needs of others?  Do you struggle with being hospitable when it is inconvenient? Leave a comment and let me know.

 

 

 

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