Proverbs 22:6

Our dad! =)

Meg

Vision for Increase

Vision for Increase Today's Scripture: Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom's instruction. Proverbs 29:18, NIV. Today's Word: God wants His people to be the most blessed! He wants His people to constantly increase so they can live as an example of His goodness. But in order to partake of everything He has in store for us, we have to be open to what He wants to do in our lives. We have to have a vision for increase. If you’re not expecting favor, or if you are just satisfied with where you are, then you will live below your privileges. But if you will get a vision for increase, a vision for who you are as a child of the Most High God and what He wants to do in your life, you’ll see supernatural opportunities, favor and increase in your life. When you look for what God is doing, when you follow His commands, you won’t just be “average” or “good enough.” No, as a child of the Most High, you are the most blessed. Today, take time to focus your heart and mind on God and His promises. Meditate on His Word and ask Him to increase your capacity to receive His blessings. Get a vision for increase, embrace His promises, and boldly move forward in the good things God has in store for you. Prayer for Today: Father, today I choose to set my mind and focus on You. I choose to look for what You want to do in and through me. I let go of any wrong thinking, attitudes or actions that would hold me back from You in Jesus’ name. Amen.

PS...

Happy Birthday Tatay! =)

How to Rekindle Lost Love by Rick Warren “You have left the love you had in the beginning. So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first.” (Revelation 2:4-5 NCV) At first glance you may not think the book of Revelation — with its images of beasts, lambs, and angels — has anything to do with romance and the kind of affection needed to sustain a growing marriage. But it does. In Revelation 2:4-5, Jesus uses an analogy from romantic love to describe the relationship of a church that had gone astray. Jesus said to the church of Laodicea: “You have left the love you had in the beginning. So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first”(NCV). He tells us to do four things that are important when recapturing our marriage: remember, return, repent, and repeat. Remember. Think about what you did in your first days together that made you fall in love in the first place. Think about the happy days. Stop thinking about all the problems you have now, and remember how your love began.   Return. Return your focus to God. Your focus is likely on everything but God. It’s likely on your problems, your pressures, your stresses, and your career. But if you want to return to your first love, you need to turn your attention back to God.   Repent. Choose to change how you think and act. Love isn’t a feeling, but it creates feelings — sometimes enormous feelings. But love is a choice. It’s a commitment to put someone else’s best interest over your own. Anything other than that isn’t love. God couldn’t command it if it were a feeling. Yet God commands us over and over in his Word to choose to love others (including our spouses). When you make a choice to love your spouse as Jesus would when you haven’t been doing so, that’s called repentance.   Do what you did at first. Do what you did when you first fell in love. Feelings always follow actions. It’s easier to act your way into a feeling than to feel your way into an action. If you wait to feel affectionate and romantic, the devil will make sure you never feel it. So you choose to act in a loving way, and the feelings will come back. The kind of affection that leads to a lasting relationship tends to seep out of marriages. It’s almost inevitable at some point. But how will you deal with it when it does? The practice of “remember, return, repent, and repeat” should be continual in any marriage. Talk It Over What was it about your first days together that made you fall in love with your spouse? What are the distractions that keep you and your spouse from making God your focus? How often do you use the excuse, “I don’t feel like it”? When you’re tempted to use this excuse, what should you do instead?

Proverbs 31:15

That's our mom! =)

Meg

Get the Capstone

Get the Capstone Today's Scripture: Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ Zechariah 4:7, NKJV. Today's Word: In scripture, when Zerubabbel wanted to rebuild the temple, he laid the foundation, but people came against him and forced him to stop. For ten years, no work could be done. Zachariah, the prophet, came by and told him to do something interesting. He said, “Go get the capstone.” The capstone was the stone that was reserved as the final piece of stone for the building. It was symbolic. It represented the finished product. Why was it important that he keep the capstone in front of him? Because every time he looked at it, it would remind him that God would finish what he started. When Zerubabbel was tempted to get tired and discouraged, he would go look at that capstone. That was God saying to him, “I’m still on the throne. I’m going to do what I promised. Just stay in faith.” Today, do you have your capstone in front of you? Do you have something that represents the final piece to your dreams? Keep that vision in front of you. Keep focused on where you are headed. Get the capstone and thank God for His faithfulness to complete the work in you. Prayer for Today: Father, thank You for the work You are doing in my life. Help me to keep the vision in front of me. Show me where to place my focus. Confirm Your Word with signs following as I stay on the course You have set for me in Jesus’ name. Amen

PS...

Happy Birthday Nanay! =)

The Unselfish Marriage

by Rick Warren

“Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.” (Philippians 2:4 NLT)

Marriage gives you many opportunities to make adjustments in your life. Change happens all the time — from the changing stages of your children to moves to job changes to illnesses. When circumstances change in your lives, both you and your spouse will have to make adjustments to keep your marriage on track. In fact, simply being two imperfect people building a life together requires making adjustments for one another.

Marriages that grow will always demonstrate the ability to make adjustments for one another. At its core, it’s really about being unselfish. Learning to become less selfish is one of the greatest lessons of life. It might be the most important lesson God wants to teach you through your marriage.

How do you become less selfish and make positive adjustments for your spouse in your marriage?

1. Think about what your spouse needs most. The Bible says, “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too”(Philippians 2:4 NLT). Unfortunately, often the longer we’re married the less we think about our spouse’s needs. The Bible says we should be concerned about everyone’s needs more than our own. That’s particularly true in our homes.
    
2. Submit to one another. To adjust to your spouse, you have to submit to him or her. That simply means giving up what you really want in order to meet your spouse’s needs. Ephesians 5:21 says, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Some men think their wives should do the adjusting in their marriage because they are the spiritual leaders of the home. But being a leader means husbands should lead the way in service in their homes.
    
3. Make adjustments in the little things. Maybe it means arriving a little bit later or leaving a little bit earlier. Maybe it means going to bed a little bit later or a little bit earlier. Maybe it means going to the movie or restaurant your spouse wants to go to. Maybe it means listening when your spouse needs you to listen and not just when you want to listen. It’s in those little daily decisions to adjust and meet each other’s needs where genuine love is expressed.

The test of your love toward your spouse isn’t what you say about your love. It’s how you demonstrate that love. Treat your mate as Jesus would. If you make that one decision, it changes everything. The definition of mature love is to treat other people as Jesus would. Jesus is our best example when it comes to love.“This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us” (1 John 3:16a GNT). 

You’ll spend the rest of your lives trying to apply that to your marriage, but your marriage will be incalculably better as you try.

Talk It Over

• What is one adjustment you’ve seen your spouse make in your marriage that has meant a great deal to you? Have you told your spouse how much you appreciate his or her adjustment?
   
• What’s one adjustment you could make this week as an act of love for your spouse?
   
• How does treating your spouse as Jesus would change how you view your marriage?

Romans 8:38-39

It is difficult to know at what moment love 

begins; it is less difficult to know that it has begun.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 

Fix Your Mind

Fix Your Mind Today's Scripture: Whatever is true, whatever is honest, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is kind, if there is any virtue, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8, NIV. Today's Word: What you think about determines the quality and direction of your life. Naturally, people who think positive, uplifting thoughts have happier, healthier, longer lives. They are less stressed, more vibrant and enjoy better sleep. That’s why the scripture encourages us to think on good things—things that are true, noble and lovely. Some translations say to “fix your mind” on them. When you fix your mind on noble things, you close the door to the negative voices and open your heart to allow God to work in your life. Choose today to fix your mind on good things. Do whatever you need to in order to keep those good thoughts before you. Write them on note cards and put them in a place where you can see them. Confess God’s promises over your life and declare His blessing on a daily basis. As you fix your mind on the goodness of God, you will rise higher in every area of your life. You will be filled with His peace and victory, and you’ll see every dream and desire in your heart come to pass. Prayer for Today: Father in heaven, I choose to fix my mind on noble things. I choose thoughts of peace and victory. Fill my heart with Your goodness that I may glorify You in everything I do in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Attention Fans the Flame of Romance by Rick Warren “Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19b NIV) When you give your spouse your attention and focus, it’s like you give them a piece of your life. Those focused moments of intimate sharing are time you’ll never get back again. They are little pieces of your life. That’s why the most loving act you can show your spouse is to pay attention to him or her. It’s one of the most important ways you say, “I love you.” The truth is, you fell in love by paying attention. You started paying attention to someone, and that person started paying attention to you. It’s that focused attention that’ll keep the romance alive after you say your nuptials, have kids, raise a family, dig deeper into your career, and grow old together. You show you care by staying aware. To keep growing, you need to figure out how to keep paying attention to each other. If you don’t do that, your marriage will crumble. One of the ways we let our attention fade in marriage is when we stop listening to one another. We assume we know what our spouses have said. We think we’ve heard them say it over and over and over. We start jumping over their words and thinking we know what they will say. Why should you pay attention to your spouse? Consider these two important reasons: You love the person. When you give your attention, you’re showing love. Sometimes God speaks through your spouse. In fact, next to the Bible, it’s God’s favorite way to speak to you. God gives us a great recipe in his Word for the kind of focused attention through listening that makes a marriage grow. James 1:19 says, “Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (NIV). When you do the first two parts of that verse, the third one will be automatic. As you do this, you’ll keep your marriage growing and going. Talk It Over Why is it so difficult to focus on our spouses when we’re together?   What one change can you make in your life that will enhance your ability to give your spouse your attention (change your work responsibilities, turn off the television, turn off your cell phone, etc.)?   When was the last time you had the courage to ask your spouse to grade your ability to stay focused on him or her? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5F23GZj8xg

An Excellent (Godly) Wife

by Grace Driscoll

“An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.” – Proverbs 31:10–12

What is your honest first reaction to reading those verses? Do you think of all the ways you’ve failed as a wife? Does your pride make you defensive, recalling a list of ways you’ve succeeded as a wife? The fact that an excellent wife is still hard to find is a sad reality. Yet, if one is found, she is rare and valuable—a jewel.

More precious than jewels

What is your favorite piece of jewelry? A ring, necklace, or bracelet? Do you treasure it? Proverbs gives us the picture of an excellent wife being moreprecious than jewels. Like in our day, jewels were a beautiful and extremely valuable commodity in the Old Testament that were used for personal adornment. They were used for personal adornment, as a show of nobility or wealth, and were an important trade for craftsmen.

How does being an excellent wife relate to this? Just as a gem is shining and radiant, so is an excellent wife as she reflects godliness toward her husband by doing him good. First Peter 3:3-4 defines this as a gentle, quiet spirit that is an imperishable, precious jewel in God’s sight: "Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious."  

Commenting on these verses, Wayne Grudem says in Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, “The adjective gentle…only occurs three other times in the New Testament (Matt. 5:5; 11:29; 21:5), twice referring to Christ, but its related noun, translated ‘gentleness’ or ‘meekness’, is more frequent (Gal. 5:23; 6:1; James 3:13; etc.). It means ‘not insistent on one’s own rights’, or ‘not pushy, not selfishly assertive’, ‘not demanding one’s own way.’” 

Gentle and quiet

If you have a “loud personality,” what does it mean to have a gentle and quiet spirit? Do you ever get to say anything? A gentle spirit means you pray and listen to what the Holy Spirit wants you to say before you say anything. It means if and when you do speak, you have a respectful tone rather than an accusing or controlling one. 

A sinfully loud wife can push her husband to the “corner of the housetop” (Prov. 21:9) or be “like rottenness in his bones” (Prov. 12:4). For example, one woman sadly told me her sin of constant disrespect caused a part of her husband to die, and she made him afraid to lead her. He even avoids talking to her because she just argues, and he doesn’t trust that she loves him anymore. She thought if she took control that he would respect her, but instead she is “doing him harm.” On this point, John Calvin said in his Commentaries on the Catholic Epistles, "For we know how outrageous a being is an imperious and a self-willed woman. And further, nothing is more fitted to correct the vanity of which Peter speaks than a placid quietness of spirit."

If you have a “quiet personality,” are you already an excellent wife? Do you get to stay silent and just trust God to do everything for you? A gentle spirit doesn’t give you freedom to sin by never speaking into your husband’s life. God created you to be your husband’s helper (Gen. 2:18) and never speaking up is unhelpful. When you speak, you will need to pray against fear first and then trust God to give you the words and the right time to speak.

A sinfully quiet wife can be an enabler who makes her husband an idol rather than respecting and loving him toward godliness. Another woman, for example, falsely complimented her husband, thinking it would make him be nicer to her. She didn’t want to upset him, and so she outwardly submitted her actions while growing bitter and resentful in her heart toward him.

I began with silent disrespect in my marriage, then moved to fighting back verbally, and now God continually teaches me ways to work toward being an excellent wife by the empowering grace of the Holy Spirit. When I’m respectful and Mark is loving, there is nothing better than the oneness and friendship it creates in our marriage. While this has taken work and pain, it’s been worth it.

Both types of women—those with loud and those with quiet personalities, and those in between—should desire that “the heart of her husband trusts in her,” which is built over time with repentance and by being slow to speak and quick to listen. 

As wives, we need to be reading the Bible, praying with and for our husbands, serving them in ways they need (not just what we like to do), and encouraging them. How is that going for you? What would your husband say?

Submission to God first

Our ability to gain our husband’s trust and respect him in our journey toward godliness begins with our submission to God first! Our goal can’t be to fix our husband or make him respectable before we show respect. God is working on allof us, and when we seek how God wants our hearts and motives to change first, it will result in trusting God through our actions. We can wear jewels and adorn outward beauty, but God cares more about what is going on inside our hearts. We can’t fool him by wearing “fake jewelry.” He knows the difference!

Tell your husband that you want to be a crown, that you want his heart to trust you, and that you want to do him good, not harm. Then ask how you have done that well and what you need to work on. Take notes, repent, and be willing to ask God to redeem those sinful habits that keep you from being an excellent wife. As Proverbs 12:4 says, “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.”

And next time you put your jewels on, let it remind you of how precious you are to God and to reflect that back to your husband as his treasured jewel.