Every once in awhile I scan this link: www.thegracetabernacle.org/quotes/gracequotes.html to review the quotes that are offered on the Grace Tabernacle Church website. I have discovered so many wondrous thoughts there
Most recently I this quite:
The Holiness of God is not evidenced in women when they are brash, brassy, boisterous, brazen, head-strong, strong-willed, loud-mouthed, overly-talkative, having to have the last word, challenging, controlling, manipulative, critical, conceited, arrogant, aggressive, assertive, strident, interruptive, undisciplined, insubordinate, disruptive, dominating, domineering, or clamoring for power. Rather, women accept God’s holy order and character by being humbly and unobtrusively respectful and receptive in functional subordination to God, church leadership, and husbands.
James Fowler
Excerpted from: Women in the Church, Study Outlines, 1999, http://www.christinyou.net/. Used by Permission
It struck a cord in my heart how so many of those words could be used to described me and my attitude towards communicating with my husband. My goodness what a challenge it can become to be humble and unobtrusive when my blood is raging about some silly thing my husband said or did that I allowed to irritate me. More revealing is the concept that I have a real choice in how a misunderstanding can play out. Oh my word, there are moments when I just don’t get him and I seem to turn into a drama queen.
Over the last year, it has been so great to have the opportunity to be out here in God’s countryside. The Lord has made it possible to be removed from the sounds and distractions of the city to explore and discover His peace within our farm homestead. I eagerly look forward to my quiet time with Jesus and pray earnestly for a ‘quiet tongue’. He blesses me daily. Thank you Jesus! It is a hard battle to seek after a quiet tongue.
It involves an inner state of being, as well as an outward condition. Have you ever noticed that when you sit down to read your Bible or pray, your mind takes off to some urgent item you need from the grocery store? The barrier I have to struggle to overcome is the ‘Inner noise’ barrier. Inner noise can be just as troublesome as outer noise when it comes to having quiet time with God and effectively seeking a quiet tongue. After all, we want to be heard and understood.
It is a goal that sounds simple, but which meets with greater challenges than one would care to admit. In the United States particularly, we live in a world of noise. Anywhere you go, even in our own homes, there is some kind of noise to distract us, from cell phones to TV to traffic. It is so easy to fall into the trap of raising my voice and using sharp words to get my point across.
Living out here in the country offers the ‘quiet’ I need to hear God’s voice leading and guiding me. Since He does not have to shout at me, I don’t shout at my husband!
Taking quiet time for daily devotion is critical to God and it brings His quiet to our daily lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for visiting My Thoughtful Place Ministry's open chapel forum.