Women Professing Godliness

Friday, January 23, 2009

~Not Just a Homemaker ~

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

Who I really am... I was raised to be a Keeper at Home and I thank the Lord daily for that and for being raised in a christian home, we may have been disfunctional in someways but we knew the Lord. Hey not all families are perfect right ?

For the most part I am a simple countrygirl, who loves to read to learn, draw country things and
well I guess the section about my blog here shows the things I love the most.

But first and formost I love the Lord God with all my heart, secondly I love my dear husband, then my children and my family. I love making friends with other sisters in the Lord who have similar interests and who seem to be kindred spirits. It gives me great peace to know that I am not alone in this world and we all have similar walks to walk. They might be a bit different but
we go through similar trials while the Lord works in our hearts to shape us into the image of his son...

Now that is a deep and profound thought in itself...Conformed to the image of Jesus... he was loving and caring, kind, servant to others and a friend. As Homemakers we are called to a life of service to others. First to our Husband, Then our Children and to our families, then to others who are brothers and sisters in Christ. All this happens in our sphere of the home for the most part. If you live where you have no family, it can get pretty lonley ( I did this in NH for 14 years) Let's suffice it to say that I am glad to be home in NY. If you live where you have no likeminded fellowship, that can be lonley too. For many reasons I am glad we have the internet for fellowshipping with others via the web who are likeminded with you in beliefs. (We do not do "christmas" like others do, we do not do easter or halloween either. I guess to us that makes us sorta different then most) Homeschooling sets us appart alot of times as we live where others do it but not to the point we have a homeschool group to fellowship with. We earnestly are praying for the above. Well as I was saying were different then most. I was raised Baptist but to wear dresses only and a headcovering on Lords Day, we haven't done "christmas" since I was 11 years old. I was raised a Landmark baptist pretty much calvanistic in doctrine. DH was raised Catholic, but PTL he got saved and came out of that fast . Right now I guess I have to say I or we are not any denomination, we're Plain Christians... I still love to wear dresses and still cover on Lord's Day. Am praying on covering full-time . It amazes me that the Lord has brought me through so many changes, trials and on different paths, all to mould me into who I am suppose to be in Him.

I am more then just a Homemaker, I am one of The Kings Daughters...

Blessings
Linda
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Friday, January 23, 2009

Wives of Husbands who suffer from Deprssion or Mental Illness

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stand_strong/

A support group for gals who are living with and caring for their husband who is suffering from depression and/or mental illness. The purpose of the group is to offer support and encouragement to women along the way. This is a place to share strategies, good reading, ideas, and hopeful solutions to assist those who are living with depression. We can also explore how this illness affects family life, social life and church life.

The name refers to Christian women who are willing to stand up and be strong for their man, and to steadfastly care for him, even tho he is sick. It is a support group for Christian women who have made a vow on their wedding day "in sickness and in health" and with time they find they are being called on to make good on that promise to stand with him in sickness. It is a support group for Christian women who are determined to stand strong, even tho their husband is so sick and so unable to be the provider and protector that he would like to be.

This group will be predominantly Christian and Christian thought, prayer and scripture is encouraged and expected.
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Friday, January 23, 2009

Grace for every trial , Grace for every mile....

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

As I walked arround Walmart this afternoon....That is right I said walked, for the first time in 7 weeks I walked arround the store to get what I needed. It was slow going but I did it !!!
God is good and His Grace is indeed a marvelous thing to exsperience in life...

I was thinking of all my Sisters out there who are striving to live a godly life and walk holy before the Lord. I was thinking that life could indeed be much harder then it is , as I know several sisters who are suffering things far worse then I have lately. After all, I had my leg damaged and I lost a baby.... But there are sisters out there who suffer with worse diseases, greater losses then my own. So, I prayed as I was thinking for each one that came to my mind. I was sorta going slow as Mark led the cart arround the store and the girls rode on the back for two to sit on. We went today to get a DVD/CD burner/player as my CD player died in my computer...PTL we found one for 50.00 that does it all...smile   So I prayed and thought that God's Grace to me is sufficient, he extends it by the minute to me and I need not fear what tomorrow holds for me or my family. I know that he loves and cares for me and will see me through whatever is my way to walk in.
I have this Tape here by Mrs. Harold Leek with a song called " New Grace " I think it is called, it is just lovely. But the song speaks of " Grace for every hour, Grace to love and pray for sinners and there'll be New Grace when its my turn ...... well you get the idea. "

Every day is new, each morning is new and There is not anything that the Lord cannot do.
Alot of today I was praying for My Sisters Cindy, Lynne, Angie, all of whom are having trying times with health in their lives or trying times in marriage that I can relate to all too well. My heart cries for their pain.... (Ya today was your day girls) I want to tell you that back in 2001 I was in a car accident and it broke my left leg in three places and shattered my ankle. I was a single mom then, a SAHSM. I had met Mark but we weren't married yet. I spent 9 days in the hospital and then my Mom and Sister brought me home to my trailer.   I couldnt walk, I couldnt bake , cook, I was stuck in bed for quite sometime. And after this I was stuck in a wheelchair for 10 months till I worked at getting well and regained strength in my leg ( my calf muscle had atrophed and I needed to heal and regain that muscle.) Well that was in July of 2001. In Sept 2001 Mark and I married and moved at the end of that month to his Moms and we were there for a week or so as we waited for the closing on our farm to happen.
Mark was such a sweetheart, pushing me arround everywhere we went and working a full-time job.   Well I thought life couldnt get worse then it was for me... boy was I wrong.
I had gotten pregnant and didnt know it and about the time I learned I was, well The Lord called that first baby of ours home to be with him. I miscarried Oct 9th , 2001. This was the second time I had miscarried in my lifetime. The first time was in 1991 when I was in NH.
So my heart was hurting but my life was busy and my leg was not feeling to good. Have you ever tried to be a keeper at home from a wheelchair, be on Hydrocodone and Homeschool 3 children and a month later I found out I was pregnant with Faith... So here I am pregnant again in a wheelchair... We were newlyweds ya know!!! I wanted to be the perfect wife, the godly helpmeet , the wonderful mamma and homeschool teacher... All the while trying to live out my countrygirl dream on a farm in Central NY... Perhaps it was more like I was the bride who complained , got irritated with my children and they rebeled and I was a hormonal wreck and on prescription drugs, got off those fast, you know that stuff messes with your mind !!!!

OK life couldnt get worse.... LOL (Ya I can laugh about all of it now...) WE went on a honeymoon to Lancaster PA to Amish Country...Mark pushed me arround to see everything.
Then a week later...guess what ?   I found out my DH was suffering from Mental Illness !!!!
not only that....He had what I call massive Debt in Credit Cards...

Do you ever get the hint that God is trying to teach you something, when all this stuff hits you with in a few months time ?    I was pleading with the Lord to give me HELP!!!! I was Scared, I was hurt, I was homeschooling my kids and I was PREGNANT !!!! again, how could this be, I just lost a baby and hadnt had a monthly and well my mind couldnt take it all in... But you know what...God gave me Grace to deal with all of it, every single issue in my life, that doesn't mean I become the perfect wife or mother, but it means that I prayed a whole lot and I tried to make a go of it all.

After all I love the Lord, He surely loves me and I loved and still love Mark with all my heart... Life is so funny even when it is scarey....when we can look back and see that the Lord was right there the whole time, the whole way... we have to laugh at ourselves for being all to human and in the long haul we come out of it polished more holy, godly and better for what we suffered through...

So, did you ever get the feeling that is why the bible says " We suffer that we might know the sufferings of Christ"   Is that why it says " Let Patience have its perfect work in you "....

So lets see... I had Faith Aug 2002, I had learned to walk again and drive, I was driving way before I was out of the wheelchair, I use to take my children to Walmart and even after I learned to walk they would say " Mom, could you go a bit faster ?" Why ? Mom there is an 80 year old man behind us who can walk faster then you !!!!"     LOL,   I didn't care, I was walking.... God had given me a wonderful Midwife and I had Faith and came home and what a JOY it was to have a baby after 9 years from having Michael and ending up divorced and thinking I would never have another baby again....But God had blessed me and I was on cloud nine.... OK so there were times I wish I was on cloud nine.... Mark had worked fulltime for a year and he burned out, wasn't working and we were living on SSD and my settlement from the accident....
Do you know God knows your needs and he will meet them in some way shape or form...you might not know from where, but he does.
Faith is 5 months old and I start to feel sick and So I go to the Dr and what do you know....
I was pregnant for Hope. Hey Did I tell you that I get massive Acid Reflux when pregnant !!!
I have to live on Zantac AM/PM doses... That was what tipped me off to being pregnant , mind ya I only have had this with mine and mark's children... couldnt eat, felt lousy, couldnt sleep and Mark was trying to work, but he wasnt feeling well... So Oct 2003 I have Hope and we are having marriage troubles and He is self medicating... some of you know what I am talking about. Now how can this be....after all i married a christian man, who is the most godly man I know, next to a few older men I know who are pastors... Lord how can this be ?

Hey, Life goes on.... You pick up yourself by your petticoats and you shake off the dust and you go on... You milk the goats, you teach the kids and you read good books and you seclude yourself from the outside world.... Well except for a few lists your on.... You meet a Sister who tries to encourage you, but she cannot understand what your going through...
You try and try harder to be the godly wife and mother...

So, Hope is 11 months old and I am feeling sick again...Guess what ???? Ya you got it... I am pregnant again... ( Now understand this...to a quiverful minded couple this is great) I was , Mark wasnt really then.... but this would only be our 4th baby...remember we lost one had two and this is #4.... Well my older teens are being rebellous, the two oldest move out to their Dads in NH and you know that all the blame for past is given to me as the horrible mother who cannot deal with the acholic/abusive spouse... So ya it is my fault after 14 years of marraige for doing what was best for Myself and my Children....   Trust me folks, I am over it...God has given me Grace and I strive very hard to extend that Grace even to my Ex. doesnt always work but I try...   OK so I am pregnant , Wes is 15 and Mike is 11, Faith is 2 Hope is 1 almost.... and The Lord calls this child home to be with Him...
The boys were at my parents for a visit two hours away, Brittany is in Auburn and my oldest lives in Auburn at the time too. I hemorraged and I go to the hospital and Mark spazzed, He stays home to care for the girls with his mom and never comes to the hospital like he said he would till I am out of surgery and alone... wondering where he is....

So who do you call on.... I called out to the Lord...Save me, my little ones need me and I am
along Lord with no family or friends to be with me. My BP is 66/44 and I am not feeling to well at all, but surgery went well. So Mark shows up with his Mom and the girls and I
am so tired , happy to see my girls and want to go home... so we went as soon as my BP went up to 100/60.   We get home and my MIL goes home and I have to exsplain to Faith that the baby is in heaven now....She had asked me of the baby was ok.....

Grace....to fogive, to speak the truth in love and to go on....
Two months later my boys come back home and we begin again to try to live our lives and go on...

Summer 2005
Mark's SSD is taken away due to overworking... someone needs to tell the government that Mental Illness doesnt just go away and that going 80 cents over the limit is no reason to cut your check totally... Mark is still sick and cannot work fulltime... nor is he allowed to on SSD. We have to put the farm up for sale or face loosing it... My heart dies inside as this is HOME, this is where my children are to grow up and were to do the country thing!!!!!
My goats, Lord not my goats, please say we don't have to sell my goats....
I sold the goats and all my goat stuff and we sold the farm and moved to my trailer Fall of 2005, actually closer to winter as we moved in October. We and all our stuff is packed into my 16x80 1997 Titan 3 bedroom/2 bath Home... 1200sq ft....after living in a double wide on our farm that was 1580 sq ft... no privacy, no place for kids to play and no animals allowed.
Nov 1st we put an offer on a house in Canastota NY, I bought that house for us to be closer to Mark's mom and family and so he would find work....
My heart was dying inside. Mark was getting sicker and he went into the hospital and he stayed at his moms for a time.... I found out I was pregnant November 7th and told Mark and he was still quite sick and on drugs that made him not well. So I try to relax, go shopping with my parents at SAMs and came home went in the bathroom and I was bleeding... I told Mom, she told Dad and I called Mark.   Mom and Dad stayed till Mark got there and They took all 4 of my kids home with them. Mark stayed with me and I stayed home that night. Next day we went down to my Dr/Midwifes office and they want us to do hormone level tests... ok... we do them, we come back in couple days and we do them again...went up, but I was bleeding and sonogram shows no baby only a sack...so I misscarried but my hormone levels were going up.....Lord how can this be...?   So I get scheduled for a DnC and they want to do a Laporoskpy to make sure I am not having a tubal pregnancy... surgery again...

Have you ever had to sit in the Dr office and write out your own words for what is to be done if they find a tubal pregnancy ... " I am giving my permission that if I am having a tubal pregnancy, this pregnancy is to be aborted"   There is that horrible word.... and it had to be written by me to give my Dr permission to end my pregnancy, not the one I had already lost, but another one if it was in my tubes....   My heart is dying Lord, I need you to give me some peace here.... All I could do was cry....for the loss I already experienced and a possible second pregnancy loss , if there was one...
Grace.... to accept things I cannot change, to release alot of anger and to go on...
PTL , there wasnt one, but surgery wasnt fun and I got really sick and got a subderal hematoma in my left wrist and arm...Nurse pulled my IV too fast and made a mess.
So for weeks I was in pain and suffering after all that. We left, went home to the trailer and
That was Nov 9th 2005... week later Mark goes back to stay with his mom and look for work... I stay at my trailer with the kids... Closing on the house never happened till January 14th, 2006 and we all moved in on Jan 18th. Mark too, but he is still not feeling well.
Once again they try to take away his SSD and the girls SS benefits... So he gets a PT job at Walmart in Feb 2006 and we live on Route 31, louder then we thought it would be. Our yard is on a hill and though it is not in the city...it sure wasnt exactly country....but it was home for a time and we made due...
Grace to live in a place that isnt the most ideal home, but you do what you need to , to try to keep your family and DH going....
I spent alot of time praying...for some support, for a home in the country, for goats, for my children , for Mark's health and we had more hard times, but we finally got to the point that we knew we had to get the kids to the country and get to someplace with a church they could attend and my mothers church was where they wanted to be... Mind you it is not my church home, but my boys do go there quite a bit... IBYF for the kids and Youth Group.

Well I waited on the Lord my boys again take it upon themselves to rush the Lord, they wanted to leave and go to my Sisters in GA to live... so what do you do ? If you don't let them they rebell ...If you let them maybe they will learn to see that , the grass is not greener on the other side of the septic tank...... So they went... they complained and spent 3 months there...
The whole time I knew that the Lord wanted them home and learning to obey me... I was there God given mother and he said they were to obey their parents.... But I waited until the Lord said it was the right time...
Oct 2006 they came home to live with us...We had moved to RC, closer to my parents and I finally had the support i needed of family arround. We were blessed with goats when the Lord said to our friends " The Weeks Family" that they were to give me the three goats i liked.
One was born on our farm...I was so happy, so pleased to finally be in the country and near where I grew up... it wasnt manditory to move near my family, but it is nice to have someone to watch your children now and then that you trust. So , is life better....In alot of ways Yes.

Is it perfect...NO
Nov 4th 2006 to current...Mark has not found work here.
Jan 7th Mark is not feeling well and I end up taking him to his mothers.
Jan 14th I fall on icy steps and my right leg is damaged....
Jan 16th I have my neice take me to go pick Mark up so he can come home and help me.
Jan 29th I go to Dr and learn I am for sure pregnant.
Feb 12th I go to OB-GYN and get checked for normal bloodwork but I am spotting a little.
Feb 18th I miscarry again... for the 4th time in our marriage, my 11th pregnancy...
Feb 26th tomorrow, I go for sonogram and Lordwilling I have passed everything on my own...

GRACE....learning and growing in Grace....God's Grace

Today, I am walking, my DH is home and trying to get well ... tomorrow who knows what that brings...Its snowing here and I am going to head to bed....Praying that tomorrow God's Grace will be shed again in my life... Praying that my Sisters can know and exsperience that same Grace and know that There is new Grace for every trial, there is Grace for every mile and there'll be new Grace...for them in the morning....

If your reading this and you do not know of God's Grace and His Mercy... and you don't know how to go on in Him, Just ask me how to get there.... I can only tell you that if it wasnt for the Lord, I couldnt go on through all this and whatever else is to come in my life...
God is the answer to all your trials and issues in life... no matter what they are...

And if you are saved and you need someone to be friends with , to share with, to pray for you, to encourage you in your walk with the Lord... well you are more then welcome to join me and other ladies who will be there to pray for you at my group on yahoo.
The Country Homemakers Journal
Link on the right side of this blog to join...
We'd just love to have you come and share with us.
Blessings
Linda
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Friday, January 23, 2009

Embrasing Children even in the later years...

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

A very sweet freind named Patti said that seeing women like myself embracing children even at my age (43) as the Lord blesses my womb, was a blessing to her. Patti, the Lord has plans for each of us, the bible says " He makes the barren women the joyful mother of children".    My children are DD 24, DD 20, DS 18, DS 14, DD 5 and DD 4 and our newest blessing due in January 2008 DS.   Between DS 18 and DS 14 I miscarried in 1991. In 2001 we lost another to miscarriage and Again between DD 4 and the new blessing DS due in January, we lost 3 more to miscarriage.
You start to wonder if you will ever be able to carry babies to full term again, miscarriage and infertility are hard burdens to bare. I am the oldest of 7 in my family, having so many siblings and being from a large family made me desire whatever size family the Lord would give me. I wasn't always quiverful minded, as I was in an abusive marriage from 1986 to 2000.
So I kept saying when I am 30 I will be done having children... But the Lord changed something in my heart back then and well the desire for my blessings has never gone away. There are times I have set it aside and learned not to dwell on it.
Knowing that the whole time the Lord would have his will in my life, no matter how old I was. Well as I said, when you miscarry so many blessings and there is no apparent reason but Dr's keep telling you Oh it is natural as your getting older you know, your over 40 now..... It wasn't what I wanted to hear, nor was it what I believed to be true, as my own mother never miscarried once and she had 7 of us and my " little sister" was born when my mom was almost 45. Not to mention that she and my grandmother never went through menopause till 55 or so.   So why would I think that what I was going through was normal for my life or any womans life.   I questioned the validity of my Dr and midwife at the times statements. I asked for testing on my internal functions and this year after another miscarriage in February 2007, I asked for my hormone levels to be tested. All my OB said were within normal range to be able to get pregnant still, but you get that same old speech about the risk of having downs babies and the like. OK so if my hormones were ok , what was wrong ?    Well about two years ago a friend suggested that I might be suffering from LPD Litunal phase defect...(spelling is off here)   I guess that my body was not producing enough progestrone to carry a pregnancy.   So I went out and searched for something on Hormone imbalance and balancing my hormones ect.   Dr John Lee wrote this wonderful book or set of books. What your Dr may not tell you about peri-menopause: balancing your hormones between 30 and 50.   What your Dr may not tell you about Menopause.   He also wrote a book called What your Dr may not tell you about Breast Cancer.   So I read the second one, then bought the first one mentioned here. I joined some groups on yahoo about Natural Hormone replacement therapy and the like. I learned alot I never knew, I mean about things as women we really need to know about our bodies and how they work. From my symptoms back then I surmized that I was low on progestrone and used Natural Progestrone Cream for 6 months, morning and night for 14
days between the time I ovulated and starting my next monthly. I can honestly say I felt better , was not as moody, didn't retain fluid as much and my asthma and allergies seemed non existant. I was also using Whey Protien shakes and taking good vitamins. (Shaklee) which I now am an independent distributor . I didn't get pregnant during that time, so I quit using the Progestrone Cream, thinking it wasnt the issue. www.emerita.com or look for it on www.amazon.com   Emerita Paraben Free Pro-Gest natural progestrone cream.   Well long about last December I again became pregnant, didn't use the cream and lost another baby to miscarriage February 28th. So I thought more on things I was doing and using and adjusted my vitamin intake and supplements and what I was eating...
and in May on my 43 birthday I felt rather sick that weak and thought I was suffering another virus, till acid reflux set in and I decided well since I get acid reflux when pregnant, I would call my Dr and go get a blood test as the nausea didnt seem to go away after a few days. Well the night before I was to hear back from the Dr I decided I am going to start using the cream again and did from that night on. That next day he called and said you are pregnant for sure and need to go to the OB Dr. 4 weeks later I was still using the cream went for my appointment and for the first time got to hear my DS Daniels heartbeat 164 beats per minute then.   As I write he is awake within my womb and ever growing and getting bigger and expanding his territory in there... kicking as he goes. I truely feel that if I had not started using the cream, my own body wouldn't have made enough progestrone to carry Daniel to term. The Lord just impressed on me that I needed to be healthy and something was missing here that needed correcting.
    So , here I am 43 and pregnant for Daniel Josiah Finn, Our first son together and so thankful to the Lord for showing me that I needed to educate myself in how my own body worked, listen to my own symptoms and do something about it.   God is faithful.... Even when the wisdom of this world is foolishness to Him, we can count on him to guide us in the right way to go and what to do.
     Embracing and loving my children is natural to me, it comes easily and is what God intended from the start.

     To my sisters in the Lord I wish only to share my story so that maybe you can seek the Lord and overcome.

Linda
Faithful Acres
aka: The Country Homemaker
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Saturday, October 11, 2008

Sanctified Manipulation

Posted in Controlling Ways and Attitudes
In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

You know recently I was brought to thinking on this again, due to a sister saying she was saying and doing what she did to me in the love of Christ, but also due to the fact that
some women are saying they are not controlling their homes or husbands. Let me say something ok " If a sister is giving others choices and not allowing the holy spirit to lead you to see
what needs doing in your life and she says to you or to your husband or to her own husband " would you like this or would you like that ? " She is still controlling the circumstances and the folks involved
in them. She can claim she is not controlling any longer but indeed she is doing so.

"God does not bless sanctified manipulation sisters." Denny Kenaston
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Saturday, October 11, 2008

Kindred Spirits or True God Honoring Friendships

Posted in Kindred Spirits or True God Honoring Friends
In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and soberiety, not with broided hair , or gold , or pearls, or costly array;But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.I Timothy 2:9-10

I have thought alot about this subject lately, probably for the last 6 years, since being online and
getting to know many women on yahoo groups and on homestead blogger or homeschool blogger. And I wanted to come share those thoughts and some conclusions.

For many women being online is several things...
1. An outlet for daily stress, ie. a time to relax.
2. A place to try to make friends with likeminded women.
3. A place to sell our wares, ie. homemade clothing, soap, or some product we like.
4. A Place to read encouraging articles on womanhood, homemaking, Child Training and Some "godly" subject that pertains to our lives...
5. To reach the world for Christ in some small way from our homes.
6. Online is your Home Based Business.

Well for you they may be in another order of importance or some might not even apply to you in this list. But for all too many the above is your reason for being here. That is not to say that any or all of those reasons are wrong, for some it is the right thing to do. But we are here to day to discuss "Kindred Spirits and True Friendships".

What is a Kindred Spirit... If you watch Anne of Green Gables, it would seem that Anne and her Boosum Pal are likeminded in all things, but in reality they are different but are wonderful friends, although they do get into alot of mischief together... Anne was a person who needed friends and surely thought she needed a boosum pal in life.

You know it is funny I don't really see the same thought on "Little House" or " Waltons"
and in those shows or stories " Family is your best friend " Family comes first and the children learn to respect their parents... A discussion for another day....

So what is a Kindred Spirit.... Spirit says to me it is an inner or spiritual contection to one another. Kindred speaks to me of being family...Kin.   I do not want to get into dictionary definitions and here is my reasoning.... Because somehow mans definition just doesn't cut it...
All the hurts and words I see used online to describe what should naturally be there between Brothers and Sisters in Christ, just plain isn't there. I have seen the above words " Kindred Spirit" used toward other women or even myself and the air of friendship or fellowship exstended until one doesn't meet up to that other persons ideals for what they want in a friend.
Its has been sad to watch this done, not only to me but to other women, who sincerely saught to have a true friendship. Ideals: ie. Country Living, Gardening, Dresses Only, Headcovering, SAHM, Quiverful, Secure Families, Healthy individuals, Sane, Plain, Contemporary...oh there are more words to describe all those things your looking for in a " Kindred".... But did you know that no one should be placeing friendships on Outward appearances ?

The Bible says for a man to have friends, he must show himself friendly

( Pro 18:24 A man376 that hath friends7453 must show himself friendly:7489 and there is3426 a friend157 that sticketh closer1695 than a brother.4480, 251) strongs numbers for your studying included

.... friendly, hmmm like kind, caring, interested in the others thoughts ( doesnt mean they have to become like them mind ya) Friendly.....

All to often we see words to describe our character or likes and say Wow, that has to be my "Kindred Spirit"... finally Lord you have sent someone I can really be true friends with...
After 8 years of being online, I have to sorta chuckle. When I try attending what I call institutionalized Churches the same thing is seen. Women only being friends with certain women. I hear the same thing from my daughter in AL who attends a church there that is clicky. I see the same thing in my mothers church. I am telling you this should not be so...

We want to claim we love one another as the Lord commands us to do, but are we really basing our friendships and true family on what the Lord says is suppose to be those things to us. To me true family are those who are saved ( born again), bible believing, walking in holiness christians. I don't care what your denomination is.... Look Sally is Plain, Sarah is a Plain Christian, Joy is Amish, Hannah is Mennonite, Kate is Congregational, Annette is Catholic, so on and so on.... There is a Label for every known Denomination and several different beliefs within one ...Oh and even those who are Non-Denominational... I don't care about that stuff at all and I seriously do not think the Lord does either.

The Bible says that the Lord looks on the heart.
(1Sa 16:7 But the LORD3068 said559 unto413 Samuel,8050 Look5027 not408 on413 his countenance,4758 or on413 the height1364 of his stature;6967 because3588 I have refused3988 him: for3588 the LORD seeth not3808 as834 man120 seeth;7200 for3588 man120 looketh7200 on the outward appearance,5869 but the LORD3068 looketh7200 on the heart.3824 )
What is in the heart , the seat of our emotions and feelings, is what matters most. What we truely believe is what matters. I could ask any one of my sisters , Do you believe that Jesus died to save you from your sins ? and do you know what their answer is.... A resounding YES.....   Do we each have differing doctrines taught to us...You betcha...   God looks to see if you know and accept his gift of salvation through his son Jesus death on the cross for payment of your sins.... that is what he wants to know...
And if you are SAVED, ie. Born Again...then he says Be ye HOLY , for I your GOD am HOLY....
(Lev 11:45 For3588 I589 am the LORD3068 that bringeth you up5927, (853) out of the land4480, 776 of Egypt,4714 to be1961 your God:430 ye shall therefore be1961 holy,6918 for3588 I589 am holy.6918 )

Sister, Brother, walk in holiness....Whatever happened to being holy anyways...it is
a heart matter , did you ever think on that A HEART MATTER... between you and the God you claim to love. Then put it into action.... For God so loved (he gave) His only begotten Son. (John 3:16)
now we all know it says more then that, but the point is He Did Something... He didnt wait for someone else to make the first move, he just did it... Love prompted him to do it. That was his reason, his motivation and He himself... God is Love!!!!

I want to tell you all something... I may be a Christian, Homesteading, Home business, Home Birthing, Home Churching, Home Schooling , (Minded),Dresses only, Headcovering, Goat Raising, Countrygirl " countryfille", who loves to read Amish/Mennonite Prarie stories, who loves to sew, quilt, crochet, bake , garden , can and cook, draw, paint, wouldnt live anywhere but in the country woman.... I collect tins, crocks, baskets, candles, rose themed stuff , Be of the mindset that women are to be real women and feminine too mind ya... I am old fashioned to the hilt though I love some things modern...
All This Might Make you say...Oh Lord, Linda is my kind of friend.... Praise the Lord we can find like things incommon, but do I want you to base your friendship with me on those things....
NO, NO WAY!!!!
They are all superficial, outward things... I want you to base your friendship with me on the fact that we love the Lord and are saved by his grace and Jesus blood shed for our sins. That is eternal, spiritual, will not end kind of stuff...
Tomorrow the Lord may not allow me to cover or wear dresses only, cause my husband might say NO...will you forsake me over that ?
The Lord might not allow me to continue Homeschooling a child of mine, Will you forsake me over that ?
My husband might not have a home business, will you forsake me over this ?
The Lord might not Allow us to have Homebirths.... or Homechurch....Will you forsake me ?
You might learn my DH has mental illness and I have issues in my life and trials I have to walk through that you don't...Will you forsake me or will you be my true Spiritual Christian Sister....
You might learn that my older children are rebellious and not walking in the ways of the Lord or are unsaved... Will you stick by me in this also with good sound godly advise or will you leave...
Have you walked in my shoes ? Have I walked in yours ?
Hmmmmm... Food for thought huh ?
I believe it says in the bible that " With what measure ye meet, so shall you also be judged " One must be very careful as to how they judge others... All things must be compared to God's Holy Word and we must not compare ourselves to ourselves or to others, the Bible says in doing so we become unwise...
(2Co 10:12 For1063 we dare5111 not3756 make ourselves of the number,1469, 1438 or2228 compare4793 ourselves1438 with some5100 that commend4921 themselves:1438 but235 they846 measuring3354 themselves1438 by1722 themseves,1438 and2532 comparing4793 themselves1438 among themselves,1438 are not wise.4920, 3756 )
We might not agree on all things that our churches teach doctrinally, but we are non the less , saved, born again, bible believing Brothers and Sisters.... I believe that we need to accept all those who are saved by grace and believe it is only by the shed blood of Jesus Christ that we are saved ...As our flesh and blood Sisters and Brothers in the Lord and therefore love them with a full and lasting love. I also believe that forgiveness is essential... The Bible says that " As we forgive others, so shall you also be forgiven "
(Mat 6:14 For1063 if1437 ye forgive863 men444 their846 trespasses,3900 your5216 heavenly3770 Father3962 will also2532 forgive863 you:5213 )
(Mat 6:15 But1161 if1437 ye forgive863 not3361 men444 their846 trespasses,3900 neither3761 will your5216 Father3962 forgive863 your5216 trespasses.3900 )
Sheds a new light on being angry and unforgiving doesn't it......

We all need friends... I've found a friend, Oh such a friend, with love He drew me to Him, He drew me with the Cords of Love and thus He brought me to Him...

I have found a friend in Jesus, he's everything to me, he's the fairest of 10,000 to my soul....

NO ONE, and I repeat NO ONE here on earth can be your KINDRED SPIRIT.... no one can even be close to that , unless they can rise above the outward supperficial , icing on the cake , sugar coated bologna and look upon your heart.... We must strive to be Christ like in how we live, love and deal with others in our lives or online.

If you see a sister dealing with alot and your life is so busy and hurried that you cannot deal with it... I suggest you pray on it and not forsake her....
If you see a brother working away from home to provide for his precious family, I suggest you help his wife out with a meal or a cup of tea, a time of friendship and not be judgemental.
If you see a wife who struggles with family who is mentally ill and you cannot understand it...think on what the bible says about those who are feeble minded, they are still part of the body of Christ, even if mentally ill and still professing Christ as Lord. ( I can guarentee firsthand that we go through alot of things in dealing with a husband or child who is mentally ill that you cannot know of or understand )
If you see a sister with a disabled child, no matter how severly, offer her some form of help and friendship and encouragement...

Sure the movement of " Christians" is to bring Daddy Home to work, Homeschool our Children, Homebirth , Home Church, Live Simply..... but it is not possible for all of us to get to that point at the same time. Just like it is not for all us womenfolk to be in the same place at the same time... I don't care if it is Homeschooling Dresses Only, Headcovering, Quiverful....We don't all get there at the same time...and who on earth said that was the goal..... God calls each of us to a different calling even if we are all Stay at Home moms...you will deal with issues I do not and I will deal with things you will not.
Who said it was the goal ? I want to know....Did God say that was the Goal.... ? NOPE

He said " Be ye not conformed to the ways of this world , but be ye transformed by the renewing of your minds..."
(Rom 12:2 And2532 be not3361 conformed4964 to this5129 world:165 but235 be ye transformed3339 by the3588 renewing342 of your5216 mind,3563 that ye5209 may prove1381 what5101 is that good,18 and2532 acceptable,2101 and2532 perfect,5046 will2307 of God.2316 )

YOUR MINDS.... not your clothing, not your hair style, not how to school your children... your mind.

He said " By Love Serve One Another " .....
(Gal 5:13 For,1063 brethren,80 ye5210 have been called2564 unto1909 liberty;1657 only3440 use not3361 liberty1657 for1519 an occasion874 to the3588 flesh,4561 but235 by1223 love26 serve1398 one another.240 )
Love causing us to serve eachother in the Lord, imagine that.... Love thy Neighbour as thyself....
(Lev 19:18 Thou shalt not3808 avenge,5358 nor3808 bear any grudge5201 against (853) the children1121 of thy people,5971 but thou shalt love157 thy neighbor7453 as thyself:3644 I589 am the LORD.3068 )
(Mat 19:19 Honor5091 thy4675 father3962 and2532 thy mother: and,3384 Thou shalt love25 thy4675 neighbor4139 as5613 thyself.4572 )
Imagine that.... Hey do you know your neighbour ?   Muchless do you love your Sister in the Lord so much you can see past the outward appearances to see her heart and her heartache ? Do you care for her life, her family so much that you love her through it come what may ?   Or have you dumped her from your life, your list or your cares...

LOVE is something that most of the family of God unfortunately has no clue how to show or how to deal with...
Sadly, how many of our Sisters are going to be hurt, made to cry, feel a loss ? How many of us will grieve over a "kindred spirit" who once was our boosum friend, but is now shunned us do to whatever her reason is....

Sadly, I am not talking about myself or my hurts here... I am talking about others lives that need mending, that need forgiveness, that need truely to be loved by those calling themselves the Lord's and yet cannot see fit to show the Love of the Lord toward those who are truely saved. And how often do we forgive ? What do we do after we forgive ? (If I forgive my child, I go on and live with them and teach them... If I forgive my Sister I stand by her, be her friend and forget the the past... I am so thankful that the Lord God forgives us and forgets things . As far as the east is from the west...

"You ask me why I'm happy and I'll just tell you why because my sins are gone, there undereath the blood on the cross of calvary, as far as far from darkness is from dawn"

Did you ever as children learn these songs I quoted, learn the verses spoken of , I am so thankful that my Mother and Dad raised me in the Word and that I was saved at a young age and taught forgiveness and true godly love for others... So thankful that I have a mother who doesn't just read her bible early in the morning, she was seen sitting reading her bible during the daytime when we were doing things arround the house. She spoke to us of God's Word and helped us apply it to our lives. She taught sunday school and worked at the Christian School when my Dad was laid off so we could go to school there and not in a public school through out our grade school and middle school years. I was grounded in the Word so that when I did go to Public High School I knew right from wrong and was able to withstand temptation, matter of fact things that others had temptation in and doing , I didnt even seem to see or notice.
Raising our children in the Word is vital and needed today. Forgiveness, True Friendships and Christian Family are needed also. Keep in mind that even if God is showing you that your to follow something that your convicted about that Another Sister may not be at the same point as you, she may not ever be called to be convicted of the same things you are...That doesn't mean she is any less of a christian , this means that ( If and until the Lord shows her and her husband that this is what the Word of the Lord teaches and the Lord convicts them of this area...You dear Sister need to speak once or not at all and pray much for them. Do not manipulate, interfere and cause troubles in a marriage that is a godly ,secure , instituted by God relationship. Even if the wife is feeling convicted to follow her convictions, you need to tell her to wait and to follow the leading of her husband, so much as it is not against what the Lord says and pray with her until the day comes that she is allowed to follow her convictions and be obedient to her husband)
" A woman who wears a covering without the consent of her husband, thinking that God somehow will hear her prayers and bless her for obeying the Word when she is not in obedience to her own husband, is not in obedience at all " The Headcovering is all about being in submission to authority, to your Father, your husband or to God if you have neither and no other authority above you...
And if a husband and wife are convicted that this is to be followed in their home... No one should be interfering in what the Lord is instructing them in....not a pastor, friend or another woman especially... Women are to be obedient to their own husbands, not any other man , woman , even if you are a pastor of a church...
( This article isn't even about Covering, but I can tell you that following ordinances is one area where Sisters are being judged on an outward appearance of something that is an is a heart issue. Who's ordinances are they anyways... If one wears a cape dress and another wears a totally modest dress with no cape , who's ordinance is this anyways.... The Lord said "Women are to be clothed in Modest Apparel" Who dictates modest.... I believe the bible does, but I also think that a woman must try hard to remain as becoming to her own husband as she can and remain modest. She need not be wearing clothing that is baggy and unbecoming to be modest.

I wish you could all see the real need here....in life.

Praying for so many who are hurting...
Linda

This kind of behavior thank the Lord has never been on my list on Yahoo The Country Homemaker's Journal, nor would it ever be allowed to... There you will find real Sisters, with real needs, really praying, caring and compassionate. We do have fun things we will do, Write real letters, be real friends, swap fabric, make real quilts with that fabric and Ya, some are living in the country, some long for the country and some even raise goats...but there we all Love the Lord, Love our Sisters and Share what is real and important in our lives. And prayer requests are always welcome.
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Thursday, October 9, 2008