In His Word Wednesday- Worthy

Phillippians 1:27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves worthy of the gospel of Christ.

This verse is so convicting to me. I find it so much easier to conduct myself worthy of the gospel of Christ when I am out of my own home, than when I am in it. I think about how many times a day I am not slow to anger with my own children, or not putting the needs of my husband above my own, and I realize that I am not conducting myself worthy of the gospel of Christ! Let's always remember that although it's important to shine the love of Christ to others outside of our home...it's maybe even more important to be shining His light to the people who reside within our home....the people we love the most!

Lord, I pray that you would forgive me for not showing your love to my own children and husband, and that your Spirit would shine through me, not just to those outside my door, but to those in it as well! Thank you for what you did on the cross for me...let my life and my actions be worthy of Your name! Amen

Join Megan today for more In His Word Wednesday.

Loving your Husband Friday- Brag Session

It's time again to focus on Loving our Husbands! I'm going to brag a little bit about my husband. On Monday I was not feeling well at all. Rob decided to take the day off so that I could rest, and so that I wouldn't be breathing on the baby all day. So, he was here all day while I got to stay in bed and rest. But....it get's better. Not only did he stay home and take care of the kids, but he worked with the older kids all day and got the house really cleaned up! By the time I came out for supper on Monday night...the main areas of the house were sparkling clean and organized! Yea Hubby!! I really appreciated this as we were gone alot over the weekend and the housework had been neglected! It set me up for an easier rest of the week, because the house just needed to be maintained. I'm so thankful for him doing this.

If you have a something to brag about your hubby today, or some insight into marriage...head over to Shannon's blog for more Loving your Husband Friday!

In His Word Wednesday- Kindness

Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

I was reading again today in my mom's bible (as I often do). Mom had so many notes and "goodies" as I call them, in her bible. She was definitely a student and lover of God's Word. Anyhow, next to this verse in Ephesians mom has an asterisk with a note down at the bottom of the page. I just wanted to share it with all of you! The note says this...."Be kind, everyone you meet is facing a battle". Hmm..whether that was just my mom's wonderful insight, or whether she was simply copying down a quote from someone else...It sank in deep today. It is true that everyone is facing a battle of some kind. How far would it go to show a little kindness...even when we don't feel like it. Isn't it true that our spouses and our children are also facing daily battles. How encouraging could a heavy dose of kindness be to them? This was a very convicting thought to me today. I hope it will spur you also onto kindness to all.

Help me Lord to pray for the saints daily, and to show kindness to all in every situation...so that I may not just be a hearer of the Word, but a doer also. Help me to remember that anything I do for others, if it is not done with love....it means nothing! Kindness is a great first step towards love! Join Megan today for more In His Word Wednesday.

Laudry tips the natural way!

Good morning all!! I'm sitting in my chair early in the morning, watching a beautiful sunrise come up through the woods in my backyard. All I can see is red through the trees. Very beautiful. Anyhow, I'm writing this morning to pass on some quick homekeeping tips that I have stumbled across in recent days. These both relate to one of my most daunting daily tasks....Laundry!

I have discovered that in place of fabric softener, which can be expensive and hard on the skin, if you are an allergic type person, there are two natural products that can be used that work great! They are vinegar and baking soda!! Yep, when I put in a load of laundry, instead of putting in my fabric softener, I put in some vinegar (up to the fill line in my washer), and then I sprinkle in some baking soda slowly. It will bubble significantly, which is why it's best not to just dump it in! It's fun to watch, and a good science lesson for the kiddos! It works just as well as fabric softener, and although your clothes won't come out smelling like a mountain breeze....they will smell fresh and clean!!

Now, in the event that you do what I often end up doing on my busy evenings, and leaving a load overnight in the washer...ugh! Here's what I stumbled upon to fix that musty, been sitting overnight smell issue. I take a small sandwich baggie, put some baking soda inside of it, and poke some small holes into it with a fork (very carefully). I make sure the baggie is tightly closed, and then I throw it into the dryer with the smelly load. Works like a charm! After the load is done...I just throw the baggie away!

I hope these tips will be helpful to someone out there, who is looking to save money on laundry products, but still wanting to maintain the freshness!

I would share more here about cleaning with baking soda and vinegar, but due to lack of time I would love to point you to the blog of a friend of mine who is a great homemaker, and has blogged already about how to make and use homeade cleaners! Check her out here. It is so important for us wives and moms to find as many ways to keep our homes clean without breaking the bank, or without exposing our families to harmful substances.

Have a great laundry doing day!! God Bless!

Loving Your Husband Friday- Purity

It's Loving my Husband Friday, and I'm glad to be finding some time to participate again this week! Shannon is the host for Loving my Husband Friday, and as a personal testimony to some dear friends of mine, I wanted to make sure to stop and praise her for being such a godly wife. She is an example to me and to many around her I'm sure. Thank you Shannon for your example, and for reminding every week of our roles as wives!

Last Sunday our pastor preached on keeping purity in our marriage. It was a wonderful reminder for me of all the ways that I need to work to keep myself pure for my husband! He reminded us women that we need to keep our emotions for our husbands and not give them away to other men. Let's face it ladies, although many of us do not struggle with the visual lust, we get trapped when it comes to emotions. If you allow yourself to get emotionally close to another man...then you are giving yourself away to him. I believe that this can often even include fictional characters (such as tv characters, or characters in a novel). Anytime that we find ourselves wishing that our man was like THAT man, we have crossed the line. " But....he treats me so much better, or....can't I just fantasize a little that that fictional character is real and he loves me??" If we are thinking these questions in our minds at any time...then we are putting our marriage in danger!

Some ways that I have worked over the years to avoid these pitfalls in my marriage, and kept myself from temptation are these:

1) I stopped watching soap operas years ago. Not only are they immoral on so many levels, but they also are notorious for causing us women to put our real life men up to impossible standards!

2) If any other tv show or movie causes me to emotionally lust after the main male character, then I have purged it from my viewing list, and my daughters!

3) I purposefully choose not to be alone with a man that is not a relative, or someone who is basically like a relative to me. I know in my heart the men that I can "safely" be alone with, and which ones I cannot. Most apply to this rule!

4) I do not call/email/facebook with any man that I know might be a stumbling block to my emotions. If I feel that they are "safe", and yet I find myself having improper thoughts about them.....I let them go! Better to hurt some feelings and be pure than to compromise what belongs only to you and your husband!

These are some of the ways that I have chosen to safeguard myself, and one of the biggest ways I know of, is what brings us together every Friday, is to work on staying focused on loving our husbands daily. If we stay focused on their needs, and what we love about them...we are less likely to stumble.

And I want to share too, that one thing I love about my husband is that he also has a list of "safeguards" for himself to keep our marriage pure, and keep outsiders from causing him to stumble. Let's remember to pray for our hubbys in this area as well. It matters to my guy, and I'm very grateful for him, and his example to our four boys!

Join Shannon for more Loving Your Husband Fridays!