To those who know my wife...

Women, listen to my wife! She is full of wisdom. Heed her words, consider carefully what she says. Her husband cherishes her and craves her. She is his delight. Oh, that you would listen! Oh, that you would test and see the straight path laid before you. Avoid the thorn bushes and snares. Avoid the pit! Do not scoff at the woman who has her husband's praise.

I wrote this a while ago after reading a lot of Psalms and Proverbs (I know, it shows). I realized, yet again, that I have a wonderful wife! I see how she handles herself and how she offers advice after careful thought to other married women. Then I see that advice trampled on. I decided to share this, because I wish you all knew how blessed our marriage has been because of this woman. She is my Proverbs 31 woman.

Self-Advocacy

This article was found in the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Bulletin, Volume 23, Number 41, posted on October 3, 2013. This bulletin is geared toward informing state employees. Take a read through and see what you think. What jumps out at you? Is it good or bad?

Be informed: taking positive steps towards self-advocacy

This month we will explore “Being Informed” as a route to positive health and wellness. Our first topic is Self-advocacy. Self-advocacy is about getting the information you need, making decisions and assertively communicating your needs to others in order to achieve a positive outcome. Self-advocacy is all about looking out for yourself while still respecting and valuing the role others may play in your life.

Today, we all need to be much wiser consumers and to make the best decisions possible for our own welfare. Speaking up and advocating for yourself can help you to get the best product or service, save you money, save you hassles, and help you to feel competent and successful. Making informed choices and standing up for yourself can help you not fall prey to the many scams in today’s world. Every day we have choices to make and sometimes we can feel exhausted with all the decisions a day can bring. The art of discerning between various information bites and resources is a must in today’s world of information overload. It’s easy to grow weary and leave the decisions to others. Passivity is tempting but can lead to a feeling of powerlessness over your life. Take charge of your life with these steps down the road to self-advocacy:

·         Know your rights

·         Educate yourself

·         Believe in yourself

·         Determine your needs

·         Ask all the necessary questions

·         Trust your gut feelings

·         Think about your goals and what you want

·         Develop a decision making model that helps you to make good, quick decisions

Remembering to stay calm and cool when speaking up for yourself is a very important key to getting what you want. Self-advocacy isn’t about over-powering others, or taking advantage of someone. It’s about assertively asking for what you want and need in a strong yet appropriate way. If you find it’s hard in certain situations to stand up for yourself, try writing it down first or practice what you want to say with a friend or even EAP staff. Many people find it gets easier with practice. Taking care of your needs, standing up for yourself and identifying when something isn’t working and taking action is a key to self-care and self-power. Trusting yourself to take care of your own life, rather than leaving the decisions and choices to others is the key to taking charge of your destiny and creating the life you want. [name removed] and [name removed], reporters.

My thoughts: I agree with not letting others make decisions for you. We should all be responsible for our actions, but what is the motivation that is promoted here? Self-advocacy, self-care, self-power…these all fall under a more negative term of selfishness. Yes, we have done a great job of putting a positive spin on it, and we promote it as necessary in our society, because who is looking out for you? “No one” is the answer that our society wants you to believe. So we should be looking out for ourselves…right? Wrong! We are each called to look out for others and their needs. God looks out for us and we will always have what we need.

• Know your rights? Know your responsibilities.
• Educate yourself? Good, read God’s word, and teach others.
• Believe in yourself? Believe in God, the only one in complete control.
• Determine your needs? Determine your neighbor’s needs, and do something to help.
• Ask all the necessary questions. Like, “Why am I doing this?” and “Why am I here?”
• Trust your gut feeling? Only after examining yourself to God’s standard.
• Think about your goals and what you want. Is it God-pleasing? 
• Develop a decision making model that helps you make good, quick decisions. Do what you know it right.

Don’t speak up for yourself. Speak up for what is right. We keep struggling for more control over our lives when we should yield our lives to God and to others in accordance to God’s will. Goal setting is good; game planning is good; working to be more productive is good, but all is useless without the right motivation, the right heart. I am just as guilty as all of us. Selfishness comes naturally, but that doesn’t mean we need to accept it as good. That doesn’t mean we just need to be selfish more civilly. Usually we need to work for good, and our natural instinct is bad. Think about it. Pray about it. Talk to others you respect about it. Read God’s word and He will show you the way.

Move for Missions

"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news" 
-Romans 10:15

This Saturday, Oct. 5th, 2013
5k run/2 mi. walk wherever you are!

Do you have a mission? This is a great fitness event starting up this year to raise Christian awareness of spreading God's word to those around us. Our mission field could be Africa, but most likely it is just across the street as you look at your neighbor's house. God has placed each one of His people in a unique spot to impact specific people. 

"You are the light of the world." (Matthew 5:14) Shine for his glory. 

"Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Colossians 4:6) Be the salt that flavors the world, not the salt that gets rubbed into somebody's wounds.  

About Move for Missions
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Daily Inspiration

I just want to encourage you to get into God's word, see what he has planned for you, and live for His glory. There are also many books available to know how to share God's word in our society today.

Freedom to the Extent of Self-Mastery

I heard a great quote once again on a recent LLR subscription cd and I was reminded of how true this is. The quote is originally from the great Roman thinker, Sacrates.

"the truly free individual is free only to the extent of his own self-mastery." 

The principle of life still holds true: If you want something, you are going to have to work for it. We say that it is great to have freedom, that we should help get more people free. But if we don't help them earn it, freedom will soon be lost, given willingly to those that work for it.

I wonder though...does this hold true for Christians? We are given freedom in Christ. There are no requirements on us. But the bible also says we willingly become slaves to Christ, because of what He has done to save us from our lost condition. However, it is not the obedience that brings freedom, but the freedom that brings obedience. The gift comes before the action. Does this only work for God?

Aaahaa! Christ did the work of full obedience to God's law. He earned our freedom similar to Socrates' principle above. But then Christ gives us freedom (something which Socrates knew nothing about), in which our proper response is thankful obedience. Some choose to abuse this freedom, reject God's gift, and eventually lose their freedom when God must finally judge them justly for their actions.

It seems that in our sinfully deteriorated societies, we need rules to discipline ourselves, because we lack the rule of God's love in our hearts. You either submit to God's will (freedom) or you reject God's will (slavery). If we were in perfect unity with God, we would be perfectly free. And if we abuse our freedom in Christ, we choose the path of slavery to sin, punishment, and death.

I guess what I am getting at is this: Self-mastery is good and will earn you freedom in this world, but Christ-mastery is great and will lead to freedom both now and in eternity!

Christ, please always be my Master, Lord, and Mentor!

The Shack

I just finished this book today, and I thought it would be good to share what I've found. The read was enjoyable from the standpoint of exploring theological fiction writing. The basic premise of this genre is to help teach the truths of God through fiction, similar to how Jesus taught through parables. I have recently been diving into this category of literature with Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, and also the works of C.S. Lewis. 

The Shack was a much easier read and more emotional inspiring than Pilgrim's Progress, but I fear that where William P. Young has succeeded in fiction, he has neglected in sound biblical teaching. As we should do with any book written by men, I encourage all readers to compare the principles taught through The Shack with the principles taught through God's inspired Word. A great place to start would be this Reader's Review by Tim Challies. Tim has done his homework and brings up many good points with scripture references to back them up.

Dig into God's Word, follow the example of the *Bereans and Be-readin from the source of Truth.

*Ref. Acts 17:10ff

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Heal the World; Cook Dinner Tonight

I saw this billboard slogan by Penseys Spices just the other day and I really liked it. I'm not promoting running out and buying a whole bunch of interesting spices, but I think they might have something in this slogan. In our 'hurry and rush' society a lot of us have become accustom to eating out for convenience (some people debate it is a necessity). But what are we leaving behind? 

What happened to the days of families gathering around the dinner table to discuss the day's activities? What happened to knowing exactly what you were eating and where it came from? How did the extra expense of 'eating out' go from a rare and special treat to a typical budget item (either known or unknown)?

I think cooking dinner helps solve some of the family, health, and financial issues so prevalent in our American society. So I encourage you to heal a portion of your world and cook dinner tonight.

And don't miss the importance of the word "tonight." Don't wait. Don't put it off until next week. Now is the best time to start developing a positive habit. Give it a try!