Encouragement for Women

Recently as I went with my husband for a much-needed outing of running errands, I made a startling discovery. There is a universal language of communication that crosses all boundaries known to man. 

Becoming an empty nester presents many unexpected challenges, especially when we have been used to living in a home bustling with children. For years, our calendar was marked with school projects, sporting events, youth groups, and family meals around the table. Now we have an abundance of free time, and we want to steward it well.

When a conversation goes wrong and escalates into a battle, we have to deal with the aftermath and assess our part. It may help to ask yourself, "Am I shifting blame to others, making excuses for my actions, or am I accepting responsibility?" It’s amazing how many excuses we can come up with and how much blame shifting we do after giving in to sin.

“How can anything be so thrilling and yet so sobering?” This question was repeated over and over in my heart as Jim and I celebrated yet another military change of command for a dear friend and neighbor. The parade ground was packed with troops in formation who had been standing there for well over an hour before the ceremony even began.

I've studied the verses of Proverbs 31 for many years. This woman has at times both intimidated and inspired me. While it took me years to begin to understand the purpose of these passages, I have always prayed for my husband and children to fulfill Proverbs 31:28, which says, “Her children rise up and bless her; her husband also.”

Several years ago, while teaching a series entitled “The Wise Homemaker,” I asked a hundred women, “What keeps you from getting your housework done?” There were four main answers: poor use of time, lack of motivation, failure to plan, and procrastination. These reasons make perfect sense to me, and I can certainly relate to all four of these answers.

Do you like change? Some people say that they do; some people quickly respond that they don’t. I bet that most people don’t welcome a change that challenges their comfort zone. But, challenging those comfort zones is exactly what God does to grow us.

“I used to be so confident. But now I feel like such a loser.” Do you feel this way? My God never asks for us to have confidence in ourselves. He only asks that we have confidence in Him! And when God commands, He also supplies. This is true for every area of your Christian life. You can get up every day, go to your closet, and select the spiritual clothes you’ll wear for the day. Here’s a partial description of God’s approved wardrobe.

Father’s Day gives families the time to thank dads for the many ways they meet our needs. While we can show that appreciation more than one time a year, let us take time to count the many blessings we enjoy because of our husband, and show him blessings in return.

Hannah appears in the Bible during the last days of the judges of Israel when “there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). Even though Elkanah, Hannah’s husband, was a godly man, he followed the common practice of polygamy. Though Hannah was barren — the ultimate curse for a married woman, she illustrated how unpleasant circumstances can still produce a beautiful outcome.

Our devotion to God is strengthened when we offer Him a fresh commitment each day. Every morning, in a simple, genuine prayer, start fresh with God by giving Him all that you are, all that you have: now, forever, and daily. Lay everything on God’s altar in what one saint of old called the “surrendered life.”

It’s always good to see such an awesome, otherworldly, hard-to-define quality like godliness lived out and fleshed out in other women. After all, as the saying instructs us, “One picture is worth a thousand words!” So take a look at Anna. Her story is found in Luke 2:36-38.