Being a Strong Woman

        I have been thinking a lot lately about how strong of a woman I am and can continue to be. I even woke up this morning thinking about it and that is why I am writing this blog at 6:00 in the morning. Along with the strength, I can also be pretty picky too. I thought about it more this past weekend and discovered that I can make it on my own if I had to. I still have graduate college to go to and keep me busy and then settling in that new career field after that.
         It is also strange how guys these days are scared of the strong woman around them. They would rather have a weak one that they can walk all over. I can tell you one thing a guy, no matter how good looking, will never do that to me. I would rather be single then have that for the rest of my life. It also makes me wonder why do guys distance themselves away from a good, strong woman without talking to them about things first.
          A strong women seems like something a guy doesn't want in this day and age. It seems like they don't want a family to raise or be in charge of. I guess I am just a little strong on this subject because I have never had a good guy friend in my life and when I try they always take my kindness to mean something else. I have a caring heart for people in general but I think guys take that in another way. We talk about not being more then friends and then that's it no more talking to him. In today's world, it is all about business so if you are not in a business, you are not living.
            I would love to even talk to a guy about the things he does face to face and if need be explain my side of the story. It is funny how sometimes a guy won't even let you do that. The world today just seems to put a downer on girl and guy friendships. It is always perceived as the two going out or dating. I mean I know there is a line for safety at some point but you have to give people a chance.
          They want to work til their heart is content and they want their wives to do the same. The type of women I want to be might be a picky one and an old style but that is just how I was raised and want I love. I am all about the family style life and having one or two simple jobs/ministries that let people stay in the country. I am for having an 8-5 job and then bing home together as a family but now days it is hard to find that lifestyle. It is, for sure, not a lifestyle in the big city so we might need to do something about that in life but still it can be done in it.
          Call me old when I am only 28 years old and maybe my heart is old because those are my passions. I miss the good old days when nature and outdoors were everything. When you weren't see children on phones and computers or iPads. Where the children could go outdoors with bare feet. A strong woman can live in a business world but I'll be honest sometimes this strong women gets weak and can't take it anymore. She can only take so much of it too. It has made me to where I am at the point of just crying my eyes out to God. I need that country setting to keep my strong. This city setting is not for me at all and never will be.  
         I am just in that awkward stage in my life right now. I am trying to get use to being single and be okay with it but at the same time I want to be married and have a family. It is like if I am going to be single the rest of my life what will I do with it and will I be happy doing it. I am scared that I might be single for the rest of it because that is how it feels right now. In a way, I am feeling like I am doing it alone here on earth but I know I am not totally alone.
       
       
          Single or married. Strong man or none. I will always have the Strongest Man by my side that will love me always. That Man is Jesus Christ for better or for worse. For sickness or health. He will always be my One and Only. :) I am OKAY with that.

          I will keep this entry short because I want it to stay to the point. I hope it makes some sense too and people could, kind of, understand what I am feeling right now in life.
             

Am I Free?

1 Corinthians 9:1-18New International Version (NIV)

Paul’s Rights as an Apostle

9 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord? 2 Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

3 This is my defense to those who sit in judgment on me. 4 Don’t we have the right to food and drink? 5 Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas[a]? 6 Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?

7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink the milk? 8 Do I say this merely on human authority? Doesn’t the Law say the same thing? 9 For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.”[b] Is it about oxen that God is concerned? 10 Surely he says this for us, doesn’t he? Yes, this was written for us, because whoever plows and threshes should be able to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest. 11 If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? 12 If others have this right of support from you, shouldn’t we have it all the more?

But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.

13 Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar?14 In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.

¹⁵ But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me, for I would rather die than allow anyone to deprive me of this boast. ¹⁶ For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! ¹⁷ If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me. ¹⁸ What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make full use of my rights as a preacher of the gospel.

         Paul is being defensive in Corinth in these verses. He was being defensive of his personal life and the job that he had where he makes a living. He was fighting for his rights to have a ministry where he didn't need a paycheck and then a job where he did get one. He fought for both because he didn't want to do his ministry for pay but yet he needed the money to live on. He was so passionate about his ministry that he didn't think it was worth getting paid for. He was trying to get Corinth to see that they were free to do what they pleased as long as it served Christ even if they did need to jobs. He also showed them that if you love it and are passionate about it that it isn't worth anything but love.

"You're not a "real" mom. You don't know how it feels when your child gets hurt.

          I had my passions tested earlier this year when I was told that I had no idea how a child feels when it is hurt because I am not a mom. Well, I might not be what the world calls a "real" mom but I am a mom to so many children in the eyes of God. I do know what children are like and how they hurt especially when they don't have a mom at all. People might not see my teaching job as be being a mom to the children I am around but oddly enough I am and that is how I see myself. That is my passion and ministry until and if God is willing I get children of my own so I can be, what the world calls, a "real" mom. It is just a bonus that I get paid for it now but I would love doing it no matter what that is my real dream.
          Rising children up for the Kingdom of God someday if God willing. I would get them from start to finish instead of in between. That is the hard part for me know because I don't know everything that is going on in their lives. I can just know what I learn and school and treat them as a student but I want so much more to treat them like my own. To be honest, there is no second thought here at all. I dream about being a "real" mom everyday.

He choses to work where he is. Here are verses 5-6 to show you that.

5 Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas[a]? 6 Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?

Gospel ministry is a volunteer position and a "real" job makes our livelihood. 

          Those things are totally two different things. Here are some more ways to tell that they are difference. Gospel ministry is a position that you don't get paid for but love doing it because it leads people to Christ. While you are working a "real" job because you need money to live on because that is how the world works more and more everyday. I have always thought what it would be like if I was in and stayed in the Gospel Ministry position but we are all humans and God made us the way He did for a reason.

My Rights are:
-common sense
-Spiritual Practice
-Jesus' Command

1 Corinthians 9:13New International Version (NIV)

13 Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar?

Pass their rights for a greater reward. 

1 Corinthians 9:15-18New International Version (NIV)

15 But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me, for I would rather die than allow anyone to deprive me of this boast. 16 For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 17 If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me. 18 What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make full use of my rights as a preacher of the gospel.

          

          Sometimes people pass up their rights for a greater reward and that is what gospel ministry is all about. It is where you are getting greater rewards in the long run and the GREATEST reward in the end. Those rewards are types that you cannot put money on at all. Seeing a child talk for the first time. Being the only person that can comfort that one child. Seeing a child get something for the first time when you have been teaching it for a long time or something new. Seeing a child shoot a deer for the first time. See people growing food plots because they know how to do it now. Seeing the difference between hunting seasons on the grounds. 

         If you are not doing your passion voluntarily, then you are simply not trusting God in providing for you in the long run. You are not trusting that God will give you a reward for doing what you are most passionate about. If you let people get the best of you with their words like I could have back then, then I wouldn't be trusting God now and I probably wouldn't be where I am now because I would have stayed. I trusted God enough to provide for me and I knew that I had passion for the children like a "real" mom so they weren't going to bring me down at all. I decided to move on and trust God because I wasn't going to stay down in the dumps for long. I knew better and I knew what my passion was. 

My Prayer for You:

-Phil. 2:3-8

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature^[a] God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature^[b] of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

In these verses, it is talking about how Jesus didn't use the nature of God to His own advantage. Instead, Jesus made himself nothing when He came to this earth. He made Himself a servant because His passion was loving and caring for the people around Him. He humbled Himself and became obedient to what was best for the people, even death on the cross because He knew that that would save us from eternal Hell. Jesus' passion was us so He gave up everything that He had and came to this earth to live around us. 

Are you willing to do that with your passions? Are you willing to give up your rights here are earth and obey God to the fullest?

Journaling to God

         As I sit here just thinking about my life, I realize that the little things I do really help me. I think I have realized that in the past year then ever before in my life. I would've gone crazy if I wasn't able to do the little things that I do now. They have now became part of my life and I can't go on a day without doing them. Yet isn't that how it is suppose to be?
         Those little things are journaling and writing my thoughts out on paper. I like to do those things because I feel like it clears my mind of things that are bothering me. Yes, there is a difference, to me anyways, between journaling and writing. Journaling is when I let all of my feelings show and the real and whole truth about what is going on in my life at the moment. Writing is what I am doing on here. It is, believe it or not, and shorter version of how I am feeling. It is when I leave out names and tell only won't get me in trouble. I have learned the hard way about that.
           That is why it is mostly Bible studies and what I think about things and some children. The things I write about always comes up because of what is happening in my life at the moment. You might be wondering why I called this entry "Journaling with God" so I will tell you. I am going to explain why I journal to Him and how it has helped me this year. Took me awhile to get to the point, right?
           I journal to God in a prayer journal. I have a regular to big sized notebook that I use to write down all my thoughts, big and little. The thoughts could be as little as how much sleep I want to get to as big as a friendship that needs to get God back to the center of it. I don't know what I would do without journaling to God. Wait, I know what I would do I would go crazy without it. My prayer journal has been my life line these past few months and here is why.
            I think God is teaching me something through all of this too. God is teaching me to be dependent of Him and just Him. I remember when I was in college and a little afterwards I was dependent on other people. By that, I mean I would ask people, that I knew, questions about things happening in my life that they had no clue about. I would also ask them what I should do in certain situations. I noticed that I had stopped doing that about a year or two after I moved to AR and that is when I started to write more in my Journal and in this. It has just gotten better and God has started to show me what He can do when I turn to Him for everything, big and small. I have stopped going to my friends and family for advice unless I really need it right away. Even when I go to them, I take it to God and make sure it is the right way. 

          I think that it also helped when I started going to a Bible study each semester and/or start to study the Bible on my own. I look up these different verses off and on and check to see what the sermons are about in different versions of the Bible so I can under it better. I am loving "The Message" and "The New American Standard" version or something close to that. I would start with the "NIV" at first. Anyways, journaling to God has just gotten better over the years and I'm so thankful for it this year. I really feel like God led me the where I am today because I talked to Him about every little thing that was going on in my life. He lead to a job and a new apartment. I gave Him ideas and He picked out of them. He gave me patience to endure some of the hard times and still does because they aren't over yet. He gave me some wisdom when I needed it the most for children and for the other people in my life. 

            If you think I write everything in this blog, you have no idea what I write to God and that should be the way it is. I only write half of what I am thinking and what is going on in my life here. I can still keep people guessing because of that. For those of you who think I am telling my whole life story, you are only getting under a half of it. There are times where I have to have two journals for God even and I take turns praying in them. One is my everyday journal and the other one is usually for a certain thing or person if it is serious to me and I have to keep praying about it until I get an answer for it. I am a writer at heart and I love writing. It wasn't until mid way through this blog that I realized that. I will also say that I usually have 15 drafts at a time all planned out and I write the titles down and save them but it could take me a month to actually write an entry but still I can bring back those thoughts that I had when I first wrote down the title a month ago. 

              It can be this long. There are times that I write down titles and take some time to think about them and whether I should write about them on here and then I delete them because one they are more personal then I thought they would be or two I forgot what I was going to write about so it must not have been that important to me. I came up with this entry, probably at the start of this month and here I am now writing it. All this to say that there is a different between journaling and just writing things down. Well, at least for me there is a difference plus you get a small look inside what my world is like and why I write on here as often as I do. I hope someday to make this blog into a story that my children can read and learn about my life for 5 years and going in AR and also learn some life lessons from as well.
         

          

Hope and Confidence

Jeremiah 17:7-8New International Version (NIV)

7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
    whose confidence is in him.
8 They will be like a tree planted by the water
    that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
    its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
    and never fails to bear fruit.

Psalm 71:5New International Version (NIV)

5 For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord,
    my confidence since my youth.


         These 2 verses are really good at reminding me of the strength and confidence that I have in My Lord. The first one is a reminder that we are blessed if we trusts in the Lord and have confidence in Him at the same time. The outside picture gives us an idea about how our trust needs to be firm in the Lord. 
         We first need to have that trust and confidence planted in us by a situation or situations. We are the tree that is planted by the water and the water is, sort of like, God for us. Our lives flow in every which way and direction but as long as we stand firm in Christ, we are fine. The roots of the tree are an example of how strong and big our trust and confidence can grow in Christ. They also show us that if we we keep growing in those two things, then we will handle and reach situations with God. They can be good or bad situations. It wouldn't matter because we would have God on our side through the thick and thin. 
         The heat is like the situations that we have in life. Those situations make us scared, mad, confused, and so on. Some say that we might even be heated up but since we are by the stream (God) and we trust and have confidence in that stream then things should be good. We would never run out of that stream, even in the hottest of heats, because God is Living Water to our lives. We can stick out our roots to Him and be filled with things from Him to get us through anything. God sends us out in those situations and life for a reason. That reason is to show other people Him and what He has done in our lives. 
          Once when our roots start to get that confidence and trust in the Lord back then we grow leaves. The leaves on this tree are green, which means they are alive and doing well. When we are with God, we are living and doing well. No matter what we are going through in the moment. The more leaves we get the more we are learning from God. The things from God goes up and get bigger like the tree does and then those things go out in all directions and  are then filled with green leaves (aka life). 
         That one tree by the stream (God) will never fear for its life during a drought. It will always have fruit on it too as long as it is by that stream. God keeps building and sending us the trust and confidence we need in Him so we won't be out of it ever. God is always at our sides to give us what we need. He always provides when the time is right. It might be late for us but then again we don't know everything, only God knows. It might be for a hard situation or might, even, be for someone that is close to us or in our area of life that needs to be helped out. That needs to be shown God's Love or Peace or anything along those lines. 
         We have the confidence to share what God has done and who He is in our life because we never stopped growing in Him. That is where the second first comes in. God is our Hope and Confidence since our youth, especially for those who have grown up in the church all their lives. Not only should we trust God, but we should also see Him as our Confidence and our Hope. If He has been Your Friend and God for all your life, you can bet that He will be there for you in the hard times because the God of your youth never leaves you nor forsakes you. 
          

Can't Give When You Can't Receive

   Romans 12:10-11

Love one another warmly as Christian brothers and sisters, and be eager to show respect for one another. Work hard and do not be lazy. Serve the lord with a heart full of devotion.

John 1:16New Living Translation (NLT)

16 From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.

 
          Is this what I need to learn now? Is receive? Receiving is a really hard thing for me to do especially since I have a giving heart. That is the nice way to look at it and say it. I am also stubborn too but that is not the point of this entry. I would not just say I have a giving heart but a mission heart too when you really get down to it. This kind of heart can be so tiring if you don't be careful with it. Is there something for me to receive from some people? Missions? Love? Confidence? Hope?
         I picked out a couple of verse. One has the word "receive" in it and the other one tells how to receive things back. It tells us what to give and it isn't all that hard but sometimes being humans we can make it into more then it needs to be, especially in this material world.
          You can get so busy giving time or resources that you have that you forget about yourself. In today's world money is everything so in a way that giving heart worries about money, which is never good. With a giving heart, you just want to give and give no matter your own life or how you are like at living life.
          I have been guilty of giving my time too much and learned how to deal with that. Now I think God is trying to teach me to receive from others the resources that they give me. What is the most important earthly thing then money? When you have to learn to receive money from someone, then at least for me, I can receive anything. When you look at it, too, money and love can, kind of, go on the same page.
         While I am learning to receive money, since I am low on it, God is showing me the way to receive His Love and others' love and things. We have been talking a lot about marriage and singleness at church lately and for some reason the word "receiving" is being the word in my life with it. That word is a word we need to learn in both situation. I honestly think that every women needs to learn the real meaning of refieve. Our role in life and marriage is to be the giving and nurturing one and of course there is nothing wrong with that. There are times in life where we run out of all that energy to give that we need to receive for a little bit too. We so easily forget that because it isn't in our nature to do. We give love to those around us. Receiving can look hard to us and believe it or not make us look weak.

            Men, on the other hand, is the other way around I think. They are made to receive things but it is hard for them to give things. You can see that two ways in a daily life of a man. They receive money for their family, even if they don't like the job they are working. They receive things from the wife because she cares too much. They are the head of the household so they need to provide and receive things for everyone else. They feel important when they receive things. Therefore, they receive respect. They are always pictured as the strong people of the household so giving can look a little weak to them too. 

            There is a fine line between those to things but each person has to find the balance between each of them. You, at least, have to know what it feels like and how to do it. You need to give and take a little. That is one reason that a woman needs a man. We can look at Genesis and see it there too. God gave the animals to Adam so he received the animals. Yet, God saw Adam needed a helper so God gave Adam a women named Eve. Eve was there to help him and take care of him. She was there to give. 

             So let's learn to give an receive and maybe our lives will be a little bit easier. Don't you think so?

Full Days Out

          Full Days Out is what my job calls a day where the children are out of school but the club goes on all day. We had three of those this past week and I am glad we did. I got to know some of the of my children better because I was someone they could talk to. Their best friends or teachers weren't there. I got a lot of drawings too that week.

         I will write about how the days went. During those three days, there were two schools together in one school building but my school had to be the one that moved to another school. It wasn't bad but it was hard. We didn't have the supplies that we needed or could use because we could only the main things like the walkie talkies and baskets to put their backpacks in. We need bring some art to do but it was just paper of stencils for those 3 days. We also brought some toy buckets but we couldn't change them out everyday like we could have at our own spot. We had to be moved out of our own school because the AC was getting fixed over the break. That was what it was a Fall break for the students and teachers. We only had 3 places we could use and that was in the gym, cafe, and outside. They did have a pretty decent sized playground though and a lot of things to do on it.
         I will write out a couple of my memorable moments here. The first memorable moment was when one of my little boys found out that I like and am able to shoot baskets. We talked about how I use to play it with my little brother. He also told me why some of the other boys in the group didn't like me. He also told me that they thought the way I talked was funny. After all of that, though, he told me I was a great teacher. He even made me a Halloween card to take home with me saying that on it.
           The second memorable was when I was talking to a girl of mine with another teacher. I was also sitting with her and drawing with her while talking. She really opened up to me. She talked about her mom and the cancer that she has along with her grandma. The day I was talking to her her grandma was having surgery done. You could tell that it was bothering her that day. She was very emotional off and on that day. I asked her "You know I am here if you need to talk." She said, "Yes". She also drew me a picture of me as a bear.
         To me, I got to know the kids more and I liked that part about it. I got to play and draw with them. I got to talk with them and they had to talk to me. Some of their friends weren't there so they had nowhere else to turn but a teacher. I don't know if I could do a full week just yet because I was bored by the last day last week and that "break" was only three days. I also got two other drawings just because from two other girls on the last day of break. 

         I loved those 3 full days because I felt like I got to know the children better and understand them better too. I feel like we can have fun now and I can joke around with them to make their day. I have been doing that a lot this week so far.
          
         

Singleness in Community

Live as You Are Called

17 And don’t be wishing you were someplace else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God’s place for you. Live and obey and love and believe right there. God, not your marital status, defines your life. Don’t think I’m being harder on you than on the others. I give this same counsel in all the churches.

18-19 Were you Jewish at the time God called you? Don’t try to remove the evidence. Were you non-Jewish at the time of your call? Don’t become a Jew. Being Jewish isn’t the point. The really important thing is obeying God’s call, following his commands.

20-22 Stay where you were when God called your name. Were you a slave? Slavery is no roadblock to obeying and believing. I don’t mean you’re stuck and can’t leave. If you have a chance at freedom, go ahead and take it. I’m simply trying to point out that under your new Master you’re going to experience a marvelous freedom you would never have dreamed of. On the other hand, if you were free when Christ called you, you’ll experience a delightful “enslavement to God” you would never have dreamed of.

23-24 All of you, slave and free both, were once held hostage in a sinful society. Then a huge sum was paid out for your ransom. So please don’t, out of old habit, slip back into being or doing what everyone else tells you. Friends, stay where you were called to be. God is there. Hold the high ground with him at your side.

-1 Corinthians 7:17-24 (MSG)


1. What is the first principle that he gives about how believes should live?

      Don't be wishing that you were somewhere else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God's place for you. Live and love and obey and believe right where you are.

2. What does it mean to remain in condition in which we were called? What are some ways you have done that in your life?

        It means to stay there and use our gifts that God has given us in the spot where we are now. I have stayed with my passion for as long as I can remember, even when I get made fun of for it. I also have used it when times have been hard on me like switching jobs. I have tried to be positive through all things, no matter the situation.

3. We often talk about how Jesus changes our life when we become His followers. What are some life changes that you think Paul would counsel against for believers? What reasons does he give for this?

         Being slaves, being a Jew or a non-Jew. Don't try to remove things that you are already. Don't become something that you aren't. The important thing is that you follow God. Don't slip back into old habits.
        The reasons for these are following God and His calling for you, God could lead you to things that you could never think of, and God defines you life.

        
The Unmarried and the Widowed

25-28 The Master did not give explicit direction regarding virgins, but as one much experienced in the mercy of the Master and loyal to him all the way, you can trust my counsel. Because of the current pressures on us from all sides, I think it would probably be best to stay just as you are. Are you married? Stay married. Are you unmarried? Don’t get married. But there’s certainly no sin in getting married, whether you’re a virgin or not. All I am saying is that when you marry, you take on additional stress in an already stressful time, and I want to spare you if possible.

29-31 I do want to point out, friends, that time is of the essence. There is no time to waste, so don’t complicate your lives unnecessarily. Keep it simple—in marriage, grief, joy, whatever. Even in ordinary things—your daily routines of shopping, and so on. Deal as sparingly as possible with the things the world thrusts on you. This world as you see it is on its way out.

32-35 I want you to live as free of complications as possible. When you’re unmarried, you’re free to concentrate on simply pleasing the Master. Marriage involves you in all the nuts and bolts of domestic life and in wanting to please your spouse, leading to so many more demands on your attention. The time and energy that married people spend on caring for and nurturing each other, the unmarried can spend in becoming whole and holy instruments of God. I’m trying to be helpful and make it as easy as possible for you, not make things harder. All I want is for you to be able to develop a way of life in which you can spend plenty of time together with the Master without a lot of distractions.

36-38 If a man has a woman friend to whom he is loyal but never intended to marry, having decided to serve God as a “single,” and then changes his mind, deciding he should marry her, he should go ahead and marry. It’s no sin; it’s not even a “step down” from celibacy, as some say. On the other hand, if a man is comfortable in his decision for a single life in service to God and it’s entirely his own conviction and not imposed on him by others, he ought to stick with it. Marriage is spiritually and morally right and not inferior to singleness in any way, although as I indicated earlier, because of the times we live in, I do have pastoral reasons for encouraging singleness.

39-40 A wife must stay with her husband as long as he lives. If he dies, she is free to marry anyone she chooses. She will, of course, want to marry a believer and have the blessing of the Master. By now you know that I think she’ll be better off staying single. The Master, in my opinion, thinks so, too.

-1 Corinthians 7:25-40 (MSG)

32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. 35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.- (ESV)

1. What does verse 26 means?

          It means that whenever  and however you are in the present time that you should stay there.

2. What advantages does Paul say singleness offers to the followers of Jesus? What advantages does marriage offer the the followers of Jesus?

          Singleness advantages: Free from anxieties, Live with God and follow Him, Think about how to be holy in body and Spirit, and can do things for God, You can focus more on Him because you don't have other things taking that time away from you. You get to spend more time with God.

          Marriage advantages: You have someone to work along side while you two bring God the Glory that He deserves. You have someone to care for and nurture you.

3. How would you respond to someone who says this passage teaches that living single is a sign of greater spiritual maturity and that marriage is only for those who have no self-control?

           I would respond by saying, "Both singleness and marriage has its own ups and downs. One might be harder then the other but it just depends on the person God made you to be. Marriage isn't about having no self-control at all but it is about how you use that self-control for God's Kingdom and where He wants you to be."
Then I would on about stories of the single people I know in my life that as made a difference in my life and other peoples' lives too.

4. How would you counsel someone (single or married) who says that their present marital status is a hindrance to their following Christ?

         I would remind them that God has them where they are now for a purpose. They just need to find it. God has a purpose for both the married and the singles. He knows what each one of us can handle at a time and He knows our future so let Him handle things in His own Way. Each one of us grows in different ways and at different times. I would give them different ideas on how they could serve Christ with their present marital status and again tell them stories of people, both ways, that have made a difference in my life. I would also tell them that their status is not a hindrance because if you look hard enough you can find ways to serve Christ in any way and through any situation.



         My Own Side Note: These verses really had an impact on me during the sermon. So much of an impact that I realized how I was treating my single friends and how wrong I was because of that. I also noticed that I have been focusing a lot on marriage and my married friends that I really couldn't see my single friends for the way they truly are and what they are truly doing for Christ. These verses impacted my life so much that I want to focus more on being single and doing things for God that way. To be honest, my mission heart came back to me on the way home from church and was driving home crying every now and then. That is how hard it got to me. I have heard these verses over and over but I think it was just the way that they were said last night that really hit me hard. I felt appreciated and I wanted my other friends to feel the same way so after I got home from church, I thanked them too from the heart. I just pray that they know it was from the heart and nothing more.