Priorities

We all are on a journey. 

I'm on a journey with Jesus. 

I'm on a merry-go-round of serving as a wife. 

My days are filled with lessons on parenthood. 

Ministry consumes my thought life most every night. 

I'd love to have those of you join me as we walk this road together! 

Perfectionism is a bondage. I do not believe I have that bondage because I am FAR from perfect. 

Imperfections mar my very being. My soul is filled with "you did it agains" and the like. 

But my spirit is renewed daily as I open the Word of God and He ministers fresh words of life to me. 

Words that perhaps I've feasted on before, but today I needed again. 

Eating is a daily ritual. Not one to be taken for granted. Not one easily forgotten. 

Often, it is difficult to find a starting point....

Where do I begin? 

Will I ever make it to the end? 

I just don't know where to start?

Well, I believe that a great place to begin is to look at our priorities. 

God has opened the door for me to grow in the gift of hospitality and journey along side other ladies as they also grow closer to God, their husbands, and their children. 

This past Thursday night we talked about priorities. 

Here's a bit of what we discussed...

Titus 2:3-5 “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.”

I always say that God is first in my life, but is my life reflecting that? Do I spend EVERY day with the Lord? What does my prayer life look like, or my time spent on hiding God’s Word in my heart? You can see where I’m going with this. It’s easy to SAY what our priorities are, but it’s really important that we take an inventory of them so we can honestly evaluate where our weaknesses are, and where we need to find ourselves bent down before the throne of grace. See, only the Holy Spirit can change us; our striving will not “fix” us. We can take one step at a time, by faith, but He will do the hard and necessary work from the inside out. (SarahMae.com)

1)      Jesus – Our Personal Relationship

-          I want to be in constant communion with Him, growing deeper in relationship by prayer and time in His Word. (SarahMae.com)

-          Time in the Word – “In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.” Ps 5:3

-          Isaiah 40:28-31 – He gives rest to the weary

-          Page 9 of Life Management for Busy Women

o   Time – Give God our first! Write down an exact time and try to stick to it this month.

§  2 Timothy 3:15-17; (All Scripture is God breathed);                                     Psalm 34:8 (Taste and see that the Lord is good); Mark 1:35 (Jesus praying)

§  God’s Word is a good use of your time! (Jeremiah 31:25)

o   God’s Word Teaches You

§  Read pg 16 of Life Management for Busy Women

o   God’s Word Reproves You

§  Hebrews 4:12

o   God’s Word corrects, mends, and instructs you

o   God’s Word equips you

o   God’s Word guides you

§  Psalm 119:105

o   God’s Word cheers you

§  Jeremiah 15:16

§  Read page 19 of Life Management for Busy Women

-          What you do and don’t do to manage your life doesn’t only affect you. It affects everyone and everything! (Elizabeth George)

-          The study of God’s Word for the purpose of discovering God’s will is the secret discipline which has formed the greatest character. (Anonymous)

-          Work-in-Progress “Get up at 6:30 each day to spend time in God's Word, have a cup of tea to quiet my spirit, commune with Jesus!" (Me)

2)      Our Husbands –

-          I want to be a faithful, life-giving wife, bringing help, comfort, and companionship to my husband. I want to be his biggest fan and his best friend. I need to be a soft place to land for him when his day is over.  (SarahMae.com)

-          Proverbs 31:12 “A wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.”

-          How to be a treasure to your husband.

o   Proverbs 31:10 – “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.”

o   Pg 6 of One Virtue at a Time by Courtney at www.womenlivingwell.org

o   Work-in-Progress:  “Make our marriage the #2 priority. Right under my relationship with Jesus. Be more conscious of his needs. Be a helper not a nagger. Understand my God-given role brings joy to my life." (Me)

3)      Our Children –

-          My goal is to train my children in the Lord, so it is imperative that I have the time to plan Bible times, activities, and fun things for them. I also want to home school, so I must get my time under control in order to plan and execute homeschooling properly. I also want to just have fun with them – carved out times in the day that are theirs. (SarahMae.com)

-          More is caught than taught! Generations upon generations of people.

-          Deuteronomy 6:7-8 “Teach them to your children, and talk about them. When you sit at home and walk along the road. When you lie down and when you get up. Write them down and tie them on your hands as a sign. Tie them on your forehead to remind you and write them on your doors and gates.”

-    I would encourage each parent to read The 5 Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman

-                                  -         Work – in- Progress: "To teach, train, encourage, and exhort my children in what it          means to love Jesus with their entire heart for their entire life. To understand that it is my responsibility to help them discover their God-given gifts and then to help foster those inside each one of them." (Me)

4)      Our Home –

-          I want a clean home; not a perfect home. Comfort and peace comes when I tend my home well. I want a place where my children feel security and warmth, my husband has a haven, and a place where people can show up and make themselves at home. I also want to take pride in the domain God gave me to manage. (SarahMae.com)

-          Proverbs 31:27 “She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.”; Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than man.” Philippians 2:14 “Do ALL things without grumbling or complaining.”

-          I grew up with a mom who worked so every Saturday morning we got up and cleaned house. I did not have a good “daily” routine.

-     www.flylady.com was a great find for me!

 -         Why Clean? Plan it Handout by SarahMae.com - Write out a purpose statement of “why” you clean.

- Work-in-Progress: "I want to provide a warm, loving, and nurturing environment for my family to dwell in. If I cannot manage my space well, then I cannot expect my children to manage theirs well. I want to give them an example to follow as they begin a family of their own. I see in Scripture that hospitality is something that I am to be doing as a Christian. So in order to do that, I must maintain a level of cleanliness and order so that others may enjoy my home as well. I want to fill my home with Scripture and worship music." (Me)

5)      Service and Ministry

-I want to use my gifts and talents that God gave me to strengthen the church and be a light to the world around me. (SarahMae.com)

-I Peter 4:10 “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

- We are ALL called to serve. To serve our family AND others. To each this will look different. However, we are each CALLED to serve. How are you serving? Is there something you (I) need to give up? Is there something that you (I) need to push yourself to do?

- Evangelism is something that each of us MUST begin functioning in.  

-Work-in-Progress: "My soul is filled when I give out. It is my desire to share Jesus with those who are walking a similar journey as I am. I need to grow in the area of personal evangelism." (Me)


6) Personal

-I want to carve out time to sharpen my skills, enjoy my hobbies, and live a healthy lifestyle. I’m putting this last, not because I don’t think it’s important to develop ourselves as women, but because I believe the other things come first. Plus, I will be able to enjoy “my” time more if I have everything else in order. (SarahMae.com)

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 – Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, you are bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

1 Corinthians 9:24 – Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.

Philippians 4:8-9- Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. 

-Work-in-Progress: Schedule time this month for something that is both enjoyable and God-honoring!

So that was long, but....

Take a moment to write out how your priorities line up. 

Be honest. 

If Jesus isn't at the top, then don't place Him there. (You know He knows, right?!) 

If your children or hobbies are above your husband, then put that. 

Again, honesty helps us see the areas that we need to work on. 

When I wrote out my priority list I saw several areas that I needed to adjust. 

I'm not there yet, praying and working on them though. 

Learning Together - Mandy

(Sorry about some of the compositional errors. When I transfered it over from my Bible Study file it went a little haywire and looks fine until I post. Thanks for being gracious about them.) :-)