Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The Homemaker God Meant Us To Be
"Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies."
"The heart of her husband safely trusts her, so he will have no lack of gain."
"She does him good and not evil all the days of her life."
"She seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands."
She is like the merchant ships, she brings her food from afar.
"She also rises while it is yet night, and provides food for her household, and a portion for her maid servants."
"She considers a field and buys it; from her profits she plants a vineyard."
"She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms."
"She perceives that her merchandise is good and her lamp does not go out by night."
"She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hand holds the spindle."
"She extends her hand to the poor, Yes, she reaches out her hands "to the needy.
"She is not afraid of snow for her househould; For all her household "is clothed with scarlet."
"She makes tapestry for herself; her clothing is find linen and purple."
"Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land."
Proverbs 31:10-23
This woman is one who works hard in her home and in volunteer activities in the community. Her husband benefits from her activities, gaining respect because of his wife. A woman can make or break a husband by her attentiveness or lack of it.
All her decisions must take into account the effects of them on her husband.
The wife is the keeper of the home and the protector of the activities there. If her husband is unaware of danger in some way then the wife has a responsibility to warn him and appeal to him to help protect the spirituality of that home.
When there is danger of something or someone interfering with the relationships either with the children or the marriage, then the woman is responsible to protect those relationship.
"Strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come, she opens her mouth with wisdom and her tongue is the law of kindness."
"She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness."
"Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own work praise her in the gates." Proverbs 31
Next time someone tells you that her job as a homemaker is worth little or nothing, remind them that the homemaker is a manager of her home, she works under no one, but considers the desire of her husband as her head.
She can be as creative as she pleases while seeing to the needs of her household. There is more freedom in the skill of homemaking than there is in a career outside the home.
There is a false doctrine that has infected some of Christendom, and that is that a woman cannot make a move without her husband's permission. This is not at all what the Bible teaches. God has given the job of homemaking to the wife, the mandate comes from Him, not the husband. The wife is to choose to obey God. The husband has no mandate to force his wife or to dictate to her how she does her job in the home. The wife loves to please her husband and desires to help him become respected in the city gates, so if she obeys God her husband will be greatly blessed, his career will be enhanced, because he will have no worries about the jobs at home being completed. If a man oppresses a woman in her job of homemaking then she will not be as creative, she will be stagnated and even regress in her growth. When a man treats a woman like a child, she begins to act like one. The greatest lesson about the Christian life, is that God never forces anyone into anything, but encourages them and loves them.
Ephesians 5:25 "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her," A man is not a dictator but a servant, "he leads by the way that he serves." We are all to be servants to one another and submissive one to another. Colossians 3:19 "Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them." 1 Peter 5:5 "Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to [your] elders. Yes, all of [you] be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble." Remember that our husbands are also our brothers if they are saved, and the wives are also their husband's sisters. We are to operate toward them the way we would toward any brother or sister in the Lord. With compassion, empathy, correction and humility.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Where Did The Love Go!
Narcissism is an epidemic these days fascilitated by the "Self Esteem" teaching. Many years ago I remember "Christians" who argued with me, believing that self esteem was a necessary element to a stable child, so they liberally administered their doses of this poison to their children.
Unfortunately those who did not believe in self esteem were at the mercy of the entire culture, extended family, schools and even churches who practiced this evil and ruined many children of Christian parents.
Does anyone else see the devastation from this teaching? There has been an explosion of selfishness and lack of empathy from so many in our children's generation. Loving hospitality is nearly non-existent everywhere we go. I am reminded of the scripture that describes these very days.
2 Timothy 3:1-6
"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come.
"For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, "proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, "unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self control, brutal "despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure "rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying "its power. And from such people turn away!"
It is worth noting that in the passage in 2 Timothy we see that these self esteemites will have a form of religion, but it is not the faith of the Bible, they may say it is, but their brand of religion is based solely on self exhaultation.
Self esteem has caused the next generation to be unteachable and arrogant. They depend on their knowledge and fleshly works to approve them.
One of the elements of narcissism is lack of empathy, lack of sense of humor, unless someone is harmed in some way and then there is laughter over the pratfalls of others.
Another element of narcissism is the inability to encourage others in their walk, mainly because there is a sense of needing to be superior to others. To encourage others, is a subordinate position and is unthinkable for the narcissist.
God commanded us many times in the Word to place ourselves last, deferring to others, considering others with a deep concern for their welfare.
Proverbs 15:17 "Better [is] a dinner of herbs where love is, Than a fatted calf with hatred."
Proverbs 27:5 "Open rebuke [is] better Than love carefully concealed."
1 Corinthians 13:5 "does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;"
Psalms 10:4 "The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek [God]; God [is] in none of his thoughts."
When we encounter a person who claims to be saved but is ashamed at the mention of the name of Christ alone or in a crowd, then we know there are problems, and perhaps we should begin praying for their salvation.
When Christ saves us He places in us His principles and when those principles are absent then there may not be salvation.
Proverbs 15:9 "The way of the wicked [is] an abomination to the LORD, But He loves him who follows righteousness."
We can hide to some degree from one another, for a time, then the clues will give us away, but we cannot hide from the Lord, He sees all and judges all.
Unfortunately those who did not believe in self esteem were at the mercy of the entire culture, extended family, schools and even churches who practiced this evil and ruined many children of Christian parents.
Does anyone else see the devastation from this teaching? There has been an explosion of selfishness and lack of empathy from so many in our children's generation. Loving hospitality is nearly non-existent everywhere we go. I am reminded of the scripture that describes these very days.
2 Timothy 3:1-6
"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come.
"For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, "proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, "unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self control, brutal "despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure "rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying "its power. And from such people turn away!"
It is worth noting that in the passage in 2 Timothy we see that these self esteemites will have a form of religion, but it is not the faith of the Bible, they may say it is, but their brand of religion is based solely on self exhaultation.
Self esteem has caused the next generation to be unteachable and arrogant. They depend on their knowledge and fleshly works to approve them.
One of the elements of narcissism is lack of empathy, lack of sense of humor, unless someone is harmed in some way and then there is laughter over the pratfalls of others.
Another element of narcissism is the inability to encourage others in their walk, mainly because there is a sense of needing to be superior to others. To encourage others, is a subordinate position and is unthinkable for the narcissist.
God commanded us many times in the Word to place ourselves last, deferring to others, considering others with a deep concern for their welfare.
Proverbs 15:17 "Better [is] a dinner of herbs where love is, Than a fatted calf with hatred."
Proverbs 27:5 "Open rebuke [is] better Than love carefully concealed."
1 Corinthians 13:5 "does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;"
Psalms 10:4 "The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek [God]; God [is] in none of his thoughts."
When we encounter a person who claims to be saved but is ashamed at the mention of the name of Christ alone or in a crowd, then we know there are problems, and perhaps we should begin praying for their salvation.
When Christ saves us He places in us His principles and when those principles are absent then there may not be salvation.
Proverbs 15:9 "The way of the wicked [is] an abomination to the LORD, But He loves him who follows righteousness."
We can hide to some degree from one another, for a time, then the clues will give us away, but we cannot hide from the Lord, He sees all and judges all.
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