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stand still~ part two

02 Sunday Jun 2013

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Last week I left you with two statements:

~Standing is not passive but active  

~Standing is a position of rest and trust

These are absolutely true statements, yet the words rest and active seem to contradict one another. Is rest an activity? Well… if you live in the Costadini household it is!

Rest is a place of trust; we can rest knowing that the promises of God are true. Trusting in Jesus’ redemptive work on the cross, which has provided our every need. So we rest, we cease from striving, knowing that it was a gift and we can never earn it by our works.

Hebrews 4:11 says we are to “labor to enter into that rest”. It might be a fight getting there but when you are there, you rest, you trust, you have a peace.

believeWhen we get to that place where we’ve done all;                                              we are now simply required to stand.

What does standing still activity look like?

~Put on the armor of God– Never stand unarmed

Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the full armor of God. Why? So we can resist and stand our ground against the enemy.

~Count His faithfulness

Do you remember the Psalmist (Psalm 77) I wrote about last week, the one questioning the Lord? In verse 10 he comes to the conclusion he was lacking God’s help because of his grief. He quickly gets over it and says: “I shall remember the deeds of the Lord”; and for the rest of the psalm he meditates, he remembers God’s goodness, and the Lord working in the life of the Israelites.

Sarah did this as well; in Hebrews 11 the writer tells us that she “judged (counted, considered) Him faithful who had promised”. Sarah knew the faithfulness of God. While standing you must count His faithfulness. What has He done in your life?

~Rejoice

James tells us to count it all joy in the trial. The joy of the Lord gives you the strength to continue to stand. So start rejoicing!

PraiseHimSea.lg_~Praise & Thanksgiving

God inhabits the praises of His people; your praises release God’s glory, His power in your life. Thanksgiving is the attitude of gratitude. Be thankful for what He has done and is going to do in your life.

~Confess the Word

Hebrews tells us to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised IS Faithful”. Make the Word of God the final authority in your life. Keep speaking God’s Word; He is faithful to bring it to pass.

~Fix your eyes on Jesus

He is the author & finisher of your faith. Isaiah tells us that those who keep their minds stayed on the Lord will be kept in perfect peace. Be immoveable!

~Pray in the Spirit

Jude says: “build yourself up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit”

~Enforce Your Authoritystory

Jesus tells us in Luke “Behold I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over ALL the power of the enemy”. Be bold!

 

 

 

~Determine to live by the Word, faith and love

Faith in God’s Word will only work by love. Walking in love must be a way of life in order for you to resist the enemy.

When we stand well in the trial we are ensured rest, peace, strength, joy and ultimately victory.

Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord!

I would love to hear how you stand in a trial.

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son, don’t waste your life

30 Tuesday Apr 2013

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Proverbs 31: 4-7  “It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. Give strong drink [as medicine] to him who is ready to pass away, and wine to him in bitter distress of heart. Let him drink and forget his poverty and [seriously] remember his want and misery no more”. (amplified version)

562567_507019792691922_659591404_nOur Proverbs 31 woman continues to instruct her son the king. I just want to inject a thought: as children of the Most High God, we are sons and daughters of the King; we are royalty. She is advising him that it is not for kings, or princes to drink strong drink.

Verse five tells us why: drinking causes you to forget, or be oblivious of the law. Why? Because it perverts, alters, changes or clouds your judgment towards those who are afflicted, in trouble, those in misery or depressed. The word “law” also means decree; which spiritually can be translated as divine purpose. So getting caught up in this lifestyle will cause you to be oblivious or unaware of your divine purpose.

I really like the Message version for verses 4 & 5: “Leader’s can’t afford to make fools of themselves, gulping wine and swilling beer. Lest hung over, they don’t know right from wrong and the people who depend on them are hurt”.

I just want to inject another thought: there are so many things that can anesthetize any one of us. There’s the obvious: alcohol, illegal and legal drugs. What about TV, internet, social media, gambling, internet gaming, over shopping, over eating, violent movies, pornography? It could be anything that dulls our senses to our calling and divine purpose, and helping those around us.

Bottom line we are to keep our heads about us, we should not get caught up in a lifestyle that dulls our mind or senses. The reason being: to always remember our divine purpose; helping those in need, those who are depending on us.

It’s like our beautiful Proverbs 31 Woman is saying; “son, don’t waste your life on getting drunk; God has something greater in store for you. God wants to do something powerful in and through you. If you drink you’ll lose sight of your divine purpose”.

What must we do?

  • Be the example

Don’t be hypocritical; don’t do what you are telling your children not to do. They will see through that in a heartbeat.

Proverbs 20:7 “The righteous man walks in his integrity; blessed (happy, fortunate, enviable) are his children after him”.

Integrity is the quality of being honest, having strong moral principles; and moral uprightness.

When you lead a life of integrity your children will be blessed and follow right after you. You’re right living will make an easier path for them. Do your kids a favor….live right!

They learn more from watching you than they do by the words of your mouth.

  • Train your children in the ways of the Lord

Proverbs 22:6: “train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it”. Some kids may take a little detour, but the promise of the Lord is they will not depart from what they have been taught.

Teach them who they are in Christ and how to conduct themselves as such.

  • Speak into their life

Don’t be afraid to tell your kids about life. Better they learn from you and the Word of God, than from some buddy of theirs in the school bathroom.

Speak the Word of God and prophesy over them.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this post.

Scriptures to Study:                                                                                            Prov 17:21, Prov 17:25, Prov 19:18, Prov 19:26, Prov 20:1, Prov 20:20, Prov 22:15, Prov 23:13, Prov 23:19-35, Prov 24:3-4, Prov 29:15, Prov 17-18, Eph 6:1-4

Helpful Articles:                                                                               Ten Reasons Kids Leave the Church                                                          Three Huge Mistakes We Make Leading Kids                                                Building Your Child’s Self Esteem  Building Your Child’s Self Esteem Part 2

the power of confession

23 Tuesday Apr 2013

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Over the years in ministry I have made an observation in others as well as in my own life. Most Christians do not see their faith through to the end, especially if it’s taking months or even years to come to pass. In my own life, I at times have failed to confess the Word of God until what I was believing for, came to pass.

I was lazy with my faith confession. Who me???? a woman in ministry??? Noooo! YES!!! Just because a person is in ministry doesn’t mean things come automatically; all it means is we have to work out our faith for the ministry AND we have to work out our faith in our personal life.

In this new season I find myself in, I have had the time to spend confessing the Word of God over our life and our planted seed. I have been seeing amazing results.

Here are a few things I have observed:

In the beginning it seems useless….you thought I was going to say something spiritual here! I am saying it seems like nothing is ever going to happen! It feels like you are bird mimicking God’s Word. Thoughts go through your mind “this isn’t working”, “I’m bored”, “why am I doing this, I could be doing something else”.  I found that if you stick with it, for me it took about 30 days; you will notice some things will start to happen. So keep on keepin’ on!

Speaking God’s Word is like a fire and a hammer. “Is not my word like a fire?” says the Lord, “And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” Jeremiah 23:29

When you speak God’s Word into your situation it is like a fire and a hammer; it’s flaming hot, fiery, it burns through enemy lines. The hammer pounds, drives, it breaks, scatters it dashes into pieces.  The rock here means a fortress or a stronghold; the word “pieces” means fragments. So God’s Word is like a hammer that pounds, drives, and scatters the stronghold or problem into fragments. But it takes repetition; just like a hammer hitting a nail repeatedly will drive it into the wood.

229683649716199922_njubtfV5_cHear yourself speak God’s Word this will cause His Word, to get into your spirit.  Read Romans 10: 8-17; two verses I want to point out: verse 10: “for with the heart one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made”. Verse 17: “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God”.

Confession is two-fold: you hear yourself speak God’s Word; it gets deposited in your spirit. The more you hear, the more you believe it in your heart; confession declares, confirms and seals the Word of God in your heart. This can only happen by repetition. Now you believe His Word, with no doubt in your heart, mix your mustard seed size faith with that and watch what happens.

Confession brings joy, excitement, praise and thanksgiving into your situation. I have been doing the same confessions everyday for four months; I am more excited about them today than I was four months ago. When something gets in your spirit you get excited, joy comes, praise and thanksgiving come; I start to get excited I jump up and down, dance around…. Charlie, our dog looks at me….”there she goes again”.

What am I doing? I’m “holding fast the confession of my hope” Heb 10:23. In this verse the words hold and fast are the same Greek word they mean to hold down, keep in memory, to possess, to retain; this is what happens in your spirit. You possess God’s Word it is now yours; you now have its reality in your spirit.  Nothing will make you waver from God’s Word.

Confession brings vision. There is a scripture in Psalm 118: 5 “Out of my distress I called upon the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free and in a large place”. I thank the Lord daily that He has set me free and in a large place. I then start to imagine what that “large place” looks like; this is vision. What does your large place look like? Start to speak it out; the Lord will show you things, He will help you to see with the eyes of faith; if you can see it in your spirit it will come to pass.

Another scripture I confess over myself and my family is Psalm 5:11-12.  “As with a shield you will surround him with goodwill, pleasure and favor.  I envision my family and I with a shield or a cloaking device of favor surrounding us; any time the enemy comes at us he bounces right off that shield of favor. Silly as it may sound, but it gives me a visual of walking in God’s favor.

I want to encourage you to speak God’s Word over your life, and into your circumstances. Speak God’s Word over your husband, your children. Even if you are in a good place you can always use favor and blessings. If you continually plant seed, you must continually water that seed with the Word so you will get a continual harvest.

Find scriptures and make your own confessions out of them. If you need some help getting started you can email me maria.costadini@comcast.net

dare to believe

16 Tuesday Apr 2013

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Today is a special day…. we have a guest post by my dear friend Amy Stoehr. I have known Amy for 16 years. Amy is the kind of friend that you can pour your heart out to and know that it goes no further; and what you have shared will not change her love for you or her opinion of you. She is a prayer warrior, an amazing wife and mother, a shepherd with a heart and love for people; and a true friend!

AmyAmy and her wonderful husband Matt have been the Senior Pastors of The River Family Church in Vista, CA, for 26 years.  Amy has a blog as well; she wrote a series on prayer that was awesome. You can check it out at Life Words by: Pastor Amy Stoehr.

Dare to Believe by: Amy Stoehr

Precious, beloved ones it’s a great day because Jesus is alive!

I love John 11:25. Remember when Martha and Mary were so distressed because their dear brother Lazarus had died? They were overwhelmed with grief, their strength depleted from sorrow. They were so disappointed in the circumstance and could only see the finality of death, even though the Lord of Life was standing right there with them!

Their minds were on the circumstance, not on Word of God, the One able to bring the dead to life again! Jesus said to them, “I am the Resurrection and the Life.  He who believes in Me, though he dies, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die Do you believe this?.” John 11:25

Jesus is the Resurrection! He is Alive! We must remember this every moment of our days. He lives in us through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Resurrection swallows up weakness, anxiety, sorrow, disappointment and even those things that are seemingly dead in our lives. Every temporary circumstance is subject to change because of the Resurrection!

Take a moment and ask God to reveal Himself to you as the Resurrection and the Life today. You will receive strength in Him.

What really strikes me about this verse today is the final four words. DO YOU BELIEVE THIS? And that is the question today. Do you really believe that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life for you and in you?

Martha’s response to Jesus reveals that she is hoping for a future Resurrection…. after Jesus tells her that her brother will rise again, she says that she knows he will rise on the last day, in the future.

Here is the truth for us…..Yes we have the hope of  the Resurrection in our future, but the Lord wants us to see Him as the Resurrection today, this moment! He wants us to believe that He is the Resurrection and the Life in our life now, in our circumstance now, in the stressful things…now, in our marriage now, in our family now, in our disappointments now, in His Church now, in our Nation now!

Meditate on this verse today and ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you as the Resurrection and Life this week. You will live life on a whole new level. He is the Resurrection and the Life……do you believe this??????

carve time for the Lord

02 Tuesday Apr 2013

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It seems these days our lives are so jammed packed with schedules it’s difficult to find time to spend with the Lord. In order for our relationship to grow deeper we must spend the time in His presence, His Word and in praise and thanksgiving.

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Some days I think how in the world can I get this all in? You might be reading this thinking, are you crazy lady? I don’t have time to develop any relationships, let alone one with the Lord. Do you know what I have to do each day to make things happen? Where will I find the time for this?

Trust me, there are ways you can find the time. If we have time to sit and watch a movie, TV or find the time to spend on social media (OUCH!)….. then we can find time to develop our relationship with the Lord.

Reading a spiritual post on FB or twitter does not count towards your Bible reading for the day. Just saying. What I think those do is help us to keep our mind focused on Him throughout the day. But it should not replace intimate time in His Word and in His presence.

All of these are time suckers; I am not saying don’t do them, please hear my heart on this. What I am saying is make the Lord your first priority.

Here are a few suggestions on how to carve out time for the Lord:

  • Get a good study Bible: You can use this for the days when you actually have the 9780785258803_p0_v1_s260x420time to really spend in the Word. I am using a great one: “New Spirit Filled Life Bible”- New King James Version by: Jack Hayford.  Psalm 119:162 says: “I rejoice at Your word as one who finds great treasure”; Rejoice over His Word like you found a great treasure.
  • Get a Bible app on your smart phone: Use this for the days when you are on the go. I use “YouVersion” app. It’s great. I need structure, so I put myself on a few reading plans. What is so cool about this is you have it with you wherever you go; most of us have our smart phones attached to our body in some way or another. So when you are at lunch, waiting in a doctor or dental office, waiting for the kids at sports practice, or in the line to pick them up from school; whenever you have a wait: pull out your phone and read the Word.
  • Take advantage of car time: You can pray en route, listen to CD’s or podcasts of your favorite ministers. A few times a week I listen to a message, but most of the time I utilize it for prayer. Caution: be aware of your surroundings; don’t get so caught up in prayer you forget you’re driving. And whatever you do don’t pray with your eyes closed!
  • Talk to the Lord, praise Him, and thank Him throughout your day. This keeps your mind on Him; when your mind is on Him, He will keep you in perfect peace: Isaiah 26:3
  • Don’t make unrealistic demands on yourself. Sometimes we think we have to read a lot of chapters to spend time in His Word; you can do that and not even know what you’ve read. The key is putting what you read into practice in your daily walk. So read a verse or one chapter and meditate on it throughout your day, and put it into practice.
  • If you miss it: Don’t let the enemy beat you up and tell you that you are no good. Just tell the Lord you are sorry and move on. This happened to me last week. My youngest daughter came for a visit; I spent my time with her and slacked on my daily reading. I ask the Lord to forgive me and I didn’t allow the enemy to make me feel guilty about it. I just picked up where I left off and moved on.

to every season

20 Wednesday Mar 2013

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Ecclesiastes 3:1 “To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven” NKJV

This scripture is saying that everything and every season has its proper time or cycle. l look at this as- you won’t be in that season forever! That’s good news!

There are many different seasons we can go through; not every season is a negative

Spring is almost here!

Spring is almost here!

season or one that has a darkness surrounding it.  There are seasons of harvest, success in every area of life or a desert season. There are seasons of growth, seasons of reflection, seasons of sowing, of reaping, seasons of rest, refreshing, seasons of busyness and seasons of testing our character and the trials of life.

No matter the season we are in, the Lord requires that we be diligent to do some things. The Bible tells us that: “the soul of the diligent will be made fat”: Proverbs 13:4. In other words those who are diligent, focused, who have mined or dug for gold, will be made fat, or satisfied. Here are a few things that can be done in every season of life so you will be satisfied.

  • Spend time in the Word of God: Take the time to study and memorize the Word, plant it in your heart: Psalm 119:11.  In Colossians it says that hiding in Jesus are treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We must dig for His treasures; which will help us to grow and stay strong.  Read Colossians 2: 2-3 to see what the Word will do for you.
  • Confessions/ Speak the Word: Find scriptures that you can speak over your situation. Life and death are in the power of the tongue: Proverbs 18:21. Speak God’s Word over your life!
  • Prayer: Spend time praying in the Spirit it will build your faith: Jude:20. Pray with your understanding. Build your relationship with the Lord by talking with Him. Then leave some time to hear what He has to say; don’t do all the talking. It should be a two-way conversation, so take time to listen for His voice.
  • Praise & Thanksgiving: Praising God will keep you from complaining. Praise Him regularly for what He is to you and thank Him for what He has done for you. God inhabits the praises of His people: Psalm 22:3. So keep on praising Him.
  • Go to church: Church is where you get strengthened, encouraged and comforted. Don’t ever let the season you are in keep you from the family of God. We need one another.

You need to be diligent in the good seasons, or you will sow for a season of lack in any area. Many do all the right things when they need the Lord to come through; but after the answer comes they relax their grip on the Lord until the next crisis comes along.

To be honest, I have had a few of these seasons over the years. Two come to mind and both ended up in a season of lack and a desert (spiritually dry) season. In a season of harvest we feel we have earned the right to relax spiritually. As long as we live on this earth we don’t have that luxury, not with an enemy that is looking for an opportunity to take you out.

Don’t be like the sluggard in Proverbs 6: 6-11: “a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep- so shall your poverty come on you like a prowler”. Be like the ant that “provides her supplies in the summer and gathers her food in the harvest: so she can eat all winter!,

a new season

06 Wednesday Mar 2013

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I am sitting at my kitchen table watching the snow fall hard and fast; wondering when this winter will end. Sometimes we are in a winter season waiting anxiously for it to end. I find myself in that season as I write.

However, I am not waiting anxiously for it to end, I know that the Lord wants to do a deeper work in me during this season. We all go through seasons in our life in the natural and in the spiritual. What we do in these seasons determines the depth of growth in our life.

A while ago the Lord spoke to my heart: “embrace this season”.  I quickly looked up the word embrace; it means: accept or support a belief, theory or a change willingly and enthusiastically. Hahaha! Are you joking? Accept this season or this change in my life willingly AND with enthusiasm. I love the Lords sense of humor.

I started to ponder on that and realized that we can go through anything one of two ways, complaining or praising.  When we choose to praise God through the season we have the joy of the Lord and then we have strength to make it through.

Nehemiah 8:10  Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” (NLT)

Let me tell you a little bit about my season. My husband and I recently resigned as senior pastors of the church in which we were shepherds for over 15 years. We felt the Lord stirring our hearts in a different direction in ministry: as itinerate ministers. We had the Nashville, TN area strong on our hearts as a base for this ministry. So in December, we moved from California to Tennessee.

We went from constantly being busy to absolutely nothing and at the same time we became empty nesters. It is like empty nest x 200, natural and spiritual children. We went from ministering to others to ministering to our pets. When all the excitement of the move and the holidays were over; I actually started to embrace this season.

I began to look at this season as a season of refreshing and renewing, a season of deeper growth. Just like a seed; it first has to be buried in the ground in order to grow strong. It must be watered and then it will burst forth.

Use your winter season as a season of input and watering in order for you to grow and burst forth.

Check out the parable of the growing seed and the mustard seed: Mark 4:26-32.

Here are a few pics from the last leg of our cross country trip:

Missouri near the Ozarks

Crossing the Mississippi River from Missouri & then the Ohio River into Kentucky

Downtown Nashville

 

son, don’t give yourself away

26 Tuesday Apr 2011

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Proverbs 31: 3 “Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings”

This is a power packed verse describing how a king or a leader should act and live their life. I know that this verse is talking specifically to men. However, in this day and age we live in a loose and immoral society, so this is something we need to teach our daughters as well.

Our lovely Proverbs 31 mom is giving her son some strong advice: “don’t give your strength to women”. Now, that word “strength” in this verse means: resources, army, wealth, virtue, valor, goods, might, power, riches and substance. The word “women” is referring to loose women, an adulteress, or many women. So our wise mom is saying: “son, don’t give the kingdom away to a woman you have no business being with, or by having affairs with many women. In other words: don’t give your resources, army, wealth, goods, power, or riches away to loose women. And don’t give your way, or your course of life to that which will destroy kings and leaders. Interestingly this word “destroyeth” means to erase, blot out, abolish, ruin, and wipe out.

That is exactly what happens when a leader gets caught up in sexual immorality. How many leaders have been brought to ruin because they lack integrity in this area? I know this is a day and age where society accepts sexual immorality and, sex before marriage, do we dare say these archaic words: fornication and adultery. We should be raising leaders, ambassadors for Christ. We represent the King of Kings and the Lord of Lord’s.  Our sons should be taught to stay away from the loose woman and to not give himself away.   We should teach our daughters to stay away from the man that is willing to give his strength away and more importantly to not be the “loose woman”.

The Bible gives us an example in the story of Samson & Delilah. Samson was a judgeSamson & Delilah for Israel; he was their leader; and the Lord blessed him with great strength. Unfortunately he got caught up with a wrong woman who had silver coins in her eyes.  Delilah enticed Samson to reveal the source of his strength to her. His strength was in his long hair, so Delilah set him up; when he was sleeping the enemy came in and cut his hair. Samson’s strength was gone and he was taken captive, Israel’s leader was brought to ruin, wiped out. You can read the whole story in Judges 16.

I like the Message Bible version of Proverbs 31:3 “Don’t dissipate your virility on fortune-hunting women, promiscuous women who shipwreck leaders”. The definition of words can really paint a picture. The word, “dissipate” means: to scatter, squander, waste away, to lead a dissolute life, a life lax in morals. The word, “virility” means: manliness and power of procreation, a man’s seed. In other words our sons should not scatter, or squander their seed. Can I be blunt? Their power of procreation; OK they shouldn’t squander or scatter their sperm on loose women who shipwreck leaders.

I know this is not popular, but we need to teach our children about sexual purity, staying pure until they are married. We are to teach them to avoid ruinous behavior that leads to heartache and pain, possibly destroying lives.

I want to encourage those of you who have young children, be strong and teach them what is right in the sight of the Lord. Teach them to stay pure until they are married.  You can do it; I know you can!

Further scriptures to study: Proverbs 5:3-23, Proverbs 6:24-29 & 32, Proverbs 23: 27-28, Proverbs 29:3

“True Love Waits” is a program that is great for teens regarding the subject of purity.

I recommend the book: “Living Pure Inside and Out”.    http://www.lifeway.com/tlw/

teach your children part 2

09 Saturday Apr 2011

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Proverbs 31:2: “What, my son?  and what, the son of my womb?  and what, the son of my vows?” (KJV)

I love this; it’s like she is getting ready to give it to him, son what end, what good, what purpose; what ARE you thinking???? Ever been there? Then she goes on with “the son of my vows”. Other translations say the son I promised to God, or the son I dedicated to God.  The Message translation says: “Oh son of mine, what can you be thinking of!  Child whom I bore, the son I dedicated to God”.

If you have a moment of freaking out prior to instructing your children, not to worry you are in good company. Our mighty woman of God may have overreacted in this verse, maybe laid on the guilt a bit, or was acting like a drama queen with “the son of my womb” or “the child whom I bore” stint; but she did not continue in that frame of mind.

What I really like about our Proverbs 31 Woman is that she seems to have gotten over it quickly. She doesn’t camp out on freaking out. Instead she pours out her wisdom to her son for the remainder of the chapter.

I want to take a moment to talk about dedicating your children to the Lord. Dedicating your child to the Lord is so special for you and your child. Children are a gift from God; and dedicating your gift back to God is not only showing the Lord that you appreciate His gift to you; but more importantly it is asking God to give you, the grace and wisdom to carry out your responsibilities as a parent. Take a moment and read Deuteronomy 6:4-7. This portion of scripture first, commands the parents to love God. We must be the example to our children. We must love God and it must be evident in our daily life if we truly want our children to follow after and love the Lord.

Here are a couple baby dedications done at Living Faith while we were pastors

Baby Dedications @ Living Faith Brandon & Justine dedicating Above: Alexander July 2012 Below: Evelyn November 2012

Baby Dedications @ Living Faith Brandon & Justine dedicating Above: Alexander July 2012 Below: Evelyn November 2012

Baby Dedication @ Living Faith November 2012 Parents: Michael & Tayleina dedicating Celeste

Baby Dedication @ Living Faith November 2012 Parents: Michael & Tayleina dedicating Celeste

Secondly, in verse 7 we are given a command to teach our children diligently. It is not the responsibility of the schools or Sunday schools to teach your child in the ways of the Lord; it is your responsibility. So many parents leave the educating in the “things of life” to others. Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it”. This is a promise of God, when we do our part and train up our children in the things of the Lord, in morality, kindness and love, we should expect that when they get old they will not depart from what they know is right.

Our beautiful Proverbs 31 woman is a woman of action; knowing you should do something and actually doing it AND doing it diligently are two very different things. In the verses to follow she teaches her son about what kind of woman he is not to get involved with, and then also what kind of woman that he should be looking for to be his helpmeet in life.

I want to encourage you to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. Be the example your children need; teach them diligently in the ways of the Lord. God gives you this promise: if you do, He will keep your children from departing from it.

teach your children part 1

28 Tuesday Sep 2010

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When my husband Tony and I were pastors, I had the honor of teaching the women in our church a study of the Proverbs 31 Woman. The Lord put on my heart to start blogging about the wonderful treasures that are found in this awesome chapter. So here we go! I truly hope you enjoy this wonderful journey.

Prov 31:1 The words of King Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him. (KJV)

Some scholars believe that King Lemuel was King Solomon. If that were true, then Bathsheba would have been the mother that taught this prophecy. A word study will give us a fuller understanding of the meaning hidden in these verses. “The Words of King Lemuel”, here “words” mean advice, counsel, a decree or commandment, our duty, our work.

“Prophecy” means his mother’s burden, tribute or utterance. The Vines Bible Dictionary explains it as: “a spiritual load or burden that she carried, an utterance or an oracle.

The Webster’s Dictionary defines tribute as a personal testimony to achievements or qualities. Webster’s defines an oracle from a person of outstanding wisdom. So this King’s mother was a woman who lived the life of Proverbs 31 Woman; she was also a woman with outstanding wisdom.

Since the Bible says that it is a prophecy, then we can believe that God gave it to King Lemuel’s mother. This is what she taught him, instructed and corrected him with.  Vine’s describes the teaching as a sense of discipline.

Speaking to your sonThe Message Bible reads this: “the strong advice his mother gave him”.  As mother’s it is our job to speak into our children’s lives. We are to teach them, correct them and instruct them in the ways of the Lord.

Psalm 119:103-104 How sweet are Your words to my taste, 
Sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through Your precepts I get understanding; 
Therefore I hate every false way.

If our words are founded on the Word of God, they will be like honey to our children; they will gain understanding and hate every false way. Mom’s, keep speaking, give strong advice and wise counsel to your children. Speak truth into their lives.  It’s our job, our duty, and our ministry. Don’t ever stop, because the world is feeding them way too many lies.