New week. New blog. Lot’s of changes wow!

I’m so glad to finally squeeze in the time to do this week’s study. This is such an exciting book and I really have to get the companion book; I keep praying that maybe an opportunity will come up so we can get it. Lol, I’m SO careful about our finances, particularly with hubby switching jobs it seems like.

Anyway…enough with that…let’s get to the study.

This week’s questions are taken from The Companion Guide for Lies Women Believe. I am only choosing a few questions. I encourage you to purchase this companion guide if you’d like more questions to help you in your study of this book.

1. “Read Psalm 37:1-11. What are the attitudes and behaviors of a person who is claiming her rights?

The attitude and behavior of a person who is claiming her rights are generally someone, I feel, who is very impatient, prone to anger, worry-filled and have a hard time really being at peace with what they are wanting out of life; Nothing ever seems to be enough and there is a tendency to want more.

What are the attitudes and responses of the person who has yielded her rights and expectations to God?” (pg. 37)

When a person literally and completely yields their life and right to God, there is honestly a feeling of peace and stability that nothing, absolutely nothing, can ever be comparable to. There is a sense of just really being able to trust God and a sense of patience that is non-comparable to anything else known.

2. “In what area(s) of your life have you tended to think that something is your ‘right’ when it may not truly be a ‘right’ at all…?” (pg. 37)

For the longest time it was negotiating that tricky road of transiting from working to being a full time mom and wife and really trying to understand my roles as a wife and a mother and having to mentally and emotionally remember what was a “right” and what was just a “want” in our relationship.

It was very tricky but over time I was able to learn that I was approaching my role as a SAHM and wife the same that I was approaching all the other “roles” in life and that I had to learn to give just as much as I expected to receive and it was a very humbling experience that I’m so grateful to having our Heavenly Father guiding me all the more in my marriage, my family and my interpersonal relationships.

3. “What are some of your heart’s desires that have not yet been fulfilled…?” (pg. 39)

Honestly, the more I grow in my relationship with Jesus Christ, the lest I honestly do fill like there hasn’t been anything fufilled; If anything, through and in Christ, I feel completely fufilled with all He has blessed me with family, with friends, with church and His Word that there is nothing more that I could think of wanting or needing.

4. “According to Psalm 16:11, where is the only place that all our longings can be completely met?” (pg. 40)

The only place that our longings, honestly, can ever be met is with God; This can be seen when we are not with Him and I know when I’m not spending time in His word, I just feel like the rest of the day is always off kilter. God just has a way of keeping us on this firm foundation that even the mightest earthquake, can’t rock us off.
All the above questions have been taken from The Companion Guide for Lies Women Believe by Nancy Leigh DeMoss published by Moody Publishers, Chicago, IL ©2002.

5. What does Scripture have to say about a woman’s beauty? Give Scripture references.

I look at Proverbs 31 and I consider as well: 1 Peter 3:3-5 as a great guide to a woman’s beauty. They make me think so much of the “natural beauty” look that is being endorsed so much lately. 

6. How do we, as women, find balance between taking care of ourselves physically as well as displaying ourselves as the royalty we are and not falling into the trap of focusing too much on physical beauty?

I think first of all, learning to be honest about the great gift that God has given us of us and to not listen to the media’s definition of a beauty that is not only non-attainable, but geared to weaken our self-esteem not raise it; God wants to raise us and show us to be the “natural beauties” that He has already blessed us to be and at the same time; He calls us to be careful not to be too vain about our looks.

It’s easy to fall in this trap ,rather we dress like a supermodel or dress very modestly; If we get too caught up with how we look on the outside and how we appear to others, we can easily be distracted either way, with or without pearls.

….Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, in a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn’t pleased at being ignored.” Galations 2:20

I think about a post I had done about this, here, and a pastor I quoted, had said:

“We can make a serious error and put the emphasis on the external to the exclusion of what is essential. Spirituality is not gained by conformity to a set of appearance standards. Please don’t make that mistake. A person can be straight down the line with an impeccable appearance and be as mean as the devil. They can just stab you in the back. God does not want that. He wants your heart as well as your appearance to be right. ……………………….We can make a serious error and put the emphasis on the external to the exclusion of what is essential. Spirituality is not gained by conformity to a set of appearance standards. Please don’t make that mistake. A person can be straight down the line with an impeccable appearance and be as mean as the devil. They can just stab you in the back. God does not want that. He wants your heart as well as your appearance to be right. ” Source: Sermon: “Outward Appearance” by Pastor Gary Prisk

To quote another part of my previous post,”The pastor went, “quit trying to live a christian life”…just let Christ live through you…the Pharisees missed the mark and so can we.

He went on to point out..that when we are quick to point out that I’m holier than you, we have to got to stop and think…didn’t the pharisees do that? Jesus didn’t want to hang out with the pharisees so how does thinking that if we dress one way, or talk one way, makes us better and holier?That becomes pride…not humilty.”

Romans 8:5-8 (NAS)
5. For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, 7. because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able [to do so]; 8. and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

I actually like the MSG’s interpretation for ths.

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If you’d like to participate in this book study, please read the book study information by clicking here. After reading the information, you can join in with us each Monday.

“Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those
who trust God’s action in them find that God’s Spirit is in them—living and reathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn’t pleased at being ignored. “ Source: The Message Bible

Welcome back!