My sister-in-law Sarah and I had a day away together last Saturday. We both have a lot in common and shopping is one thing. We spent the day at the mall and kept saying how nice it was to have the time to freely look and take our time without worrying about anyone else. I loved having the one on one time with Sarah!
Back at home, our wonderful husbands took care of the kids, mowed the lawn, plowed the garden and had supper ready for us when we got home. What a day!
That night our little brother, Immanuel, spent the night and celebrated his 11th birthday with us on Sunday.Over the past week I've been reading alot about the thought life...about taking my thoughts captive to Christ...not letting them control me. Tearing down lies that Satan puts in my mind and replacing them with God's truth. Thoughts I've struggled with personally in the past are fears, low self esteem and even depression. This week in my devotions I read and meditated on verses like 2 Corinthians 10:5 "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" and John 8:32 "Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free". I learned to look up verses specific to the struggles I faced, write them on note cards and take them wherever I go...claiming God's truth.
Verses like
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and shield.I trust him with all my heart.He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.
Ps 139:13-14 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. (14) I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
Why is it that when you're focusing on a particular topic, it seems to creep in and at times become a struggle again? That happened for me a bit this week.
"Our thought life is something we'll work on for the rest of our lives in our desire to be godly. Staying at work on our thought lives is the very essence of godliness."
"Is godliness perfection? No, it's giving our hearts, souls, minds and bodies to God and desiring to obey Him more than anything." -Beth Moore
Philippians 3:12[ Pressing on toward the goal] "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me."
My sister planned a day out this week to go to the Vera Bradley outlet sale. My mother-in-law came and met us all for breakfast then stayed with my kids at our house while we went to the sale. Thanks Ruby for making the trip and helping me out! It was nice to have the break since Kevin was out of town a few days.
While at the sale, my nephew turned up missing. We texted him and found out that he was helping a couple of ladies out. They had collected more Vera Bradley than they could carry and needed some assistance making it through the long line for checkout. The limit for purchasing was $2500 and they had both maxed that amount out, so he had quite a load to carry. We waited for him in the van to finish helping them load their car and when he got to the van, he was grinning from ear to ear. They paid him 30 bucks for his services. That will come in handy for prom this weekend. 
God really worked out my week wonderfully...keeping me busy with fun things to do with family and friends while my hubby was away. That night I met these beautiful ladies for dinner to celebrate a couple birthdays.
Seriously, I haven't laughed this hard in a long time. I love these girls and feel blessed to call them friends. 
Chatting & laughing our heads off in the Target Garden Center
5 comments:
Sherri...Thank you first of all for your encouragement on my blog. You always come through with a sweet comment or note to lift me up.
I applaud you for how transparent this post is. Not many people share their stuggles or inner most thoughts. Some are not able to, and that's o.k. We are all created differently, and that makes the spice of life that much more interesting. But I think it was really refreshing to see your heart. I think all women have stuggled at some time with the feeling low self esteem. How can we not with all of the world showing us how we "should" look? Great verses to combat Satan and his lies. You have a beautiful heart Sherri..and the outide of you is just as beautiful.
I'm glad it's been a good week even with Kevin gone. How nice to spend some extra time with lots off others that you love. It all looked like fun. Thanks too for sharing how you learn through struggles. Heather's right. We all have weak spots. It's a blessing to others when we share them, admit we're human, but then also share how scripture helps encourage as well.
Thanks for encouraging me with the verses! Hope your run was great this weekend!
Sherri, I'm humbled when I read your journey. So glad you are gaining strength from God's Word. You are a blessing to me. About coming down for the day--it was fun! Hope I can help you out again. Love, Mom Ruby
What an insightful post. We have all been to this place, thanks for sharing
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