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All of Your Life Is Worship

July 20, 2016 by amanda 7 Comments

When I think about what it looks like to live a life of worship, I think of things like fervent prayer time, worshiping God at church, giving sacrificially to missions, and Bible study.

And while an obedient Christian woman’s life will encompass each of these aspects, that’s really not what my life looks like most of the time. Most of the time, my life looks and feels very unspiritual.

It’s not that I’m pursuing worldly passions or only living for Jesus on Sundays. No, it’s just that most of my waking (and sleeping!?) hours are filled with dirty diapers, breastfeeding, grocery lists, and scraping dried avocado and mashed banana off the high chair…..

Friendship: The Gospel Is a Leveling Ground

July 14, 2016 by amanda 1 Comment

When our perspective on relationships is rooted in the gospel, true friendship can blossom.

Have you ever “written off” a friendship with a new acquaintance, assuming she could never “get” you? I know I have. I desire to spare myself that sting of rejection that I fear.

But over the last year, God has shown me that those feelings that I have dismissed as my just being a little extra self-conscious are really a stronghold of pride in my life.

I don’t want to admit it, but my insecurities have been a hindrance for sharing in meaningful friendship with others, loving them, receiving love from them, and sharing in ministering to the body of Christ. I often hesitate to “let people in,” wanting sometimes just to “save face” rather than risk rejection.

I tend to forget that we are all in the same boat:

Every single woman is a sinner and is desperately wicked and depraved. She does not desire God or good apart from the strong, saving arm of her Almighty Father.

When I believe what God’s word says, the gospel becomes a leveling ground….

The Fourfold Beauty of a Godly Woman

May 16, 2016 by amanda Leave a Comment

A Christian woman has the opportunity to be one of the greatest influencers on earth. The striking beauty of her spirit may win the soul of her unbelieving husband. Her adherence to God’s design in marriage can proclaim the glory of the gospel. Her faith in and knowledge of God’s word can spill over into her spheres of ministry.

However, if a woman does not know her God and his word, and if she is not clinging to its precious promises, she begins to resemble Eve, the mother of her flesh. Her heart can easily be deceived by the enemy’s craftiness, and her affections can be led astray.

We who have trusted in Christ are not only descendants of Eve, but now we are descendants of Sarah, the free woman (Galatians 4:31). We are children of promise and we are no longer in bondage to Eve’s nature. In 1 Peter 3:1–6 and Hebrews 11:11–12, we receive the commendation of Sarah’s faith, and we are pointed to her life as an example of biblical womanhood. As we imitate the faith of Sarah, we can leverage our God-given gender and unique gifts to glorify our God and advance his kingdom….

A Psalm for Those Who Grieve this Mother’s Day

May 4, 2016 by amanda 5 Comments

As I shared over at Arabah Joy’s blog, many women struggle and grieve during Mother’s Day weekend. The Lord has encouraged me greatly through Psalm 13, and if your heart weeps this Mother’s Day, may these truths from God’s Word bring comfort and hope to you.

In this Psalm, let’s follow the Psalmist’s four questions, and then we’ll uncover the truth that answered the weeping of his broken heart….

When God’s Glory Plunders Your Heart’s Affections

April 13, 2016 by amanda Leave a Comment

“The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” Proverbs 18:10

For the rest of this week, this day, or even in this hour, you and I will be faced with challenges, unexpected sorrows, and fears. We might remind our souls, “Bless the LORD, O my soul,” but sometimes we can’t figure out how to shake the feelings of gloom or meet the day’s shadows with eyes on the unseen. I know what I must do (I must trust the Lord!), but some days I find my courage waning and my heart growing faint.

While we will always battle this flesh until our souls rest in their eternal home, God has provided a shelter and hiding place through the minutes and hours of our days. And that hiding place is His name….

When Women Run the Race that Christ Has Already Won for Them

March 9, 2016 by amanda 1 Comment

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)

In Hebrews 11, we read of those “of whom the world was not worthy” (Hebrews 11:38). “By faith,” they conquered kingdoms, obtained promises, and put foreign armies to flight, but they also were stoned, sawn in two, and killed with the sword. Destitute, afflicted, and mistreated, these souls are that great cloud of witnesses that have gone before us.

And then I start to look a bit more closely at that list of faithful men and women, and I see Sarah, a woman who laughed with incredulity upon hearing the promise of God and then lied and denied it when the Lord asked why she laughed. And how did Rahab get into the “Hall of Faith?” She was a prostitute. David made the cut to be on the list, and he was both an adulterer and murderer.

I could continue through the list, pointing to the souls listed and pointing out what the Bible says about their flaws and faults, and it would only serve to bring the message home more sweetly: their lives witness to faith in the Promised Messiah, the Savior of needy, sinful men and women.…

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