Finish Line

Well Ladies, the book is almost finished. On Sunday evening we discussed Chapters 18 & 19. So before the luncheon on Saturday, we are asking you to have completed Chapter 20. It has been an amazing journey and I am really sad that it is almost over. Tonia will be arriving Friday night. The Luncheon will begin at 11:30 on Saturday in the main sanctuary at CJC. If you have not signed up, please let me know if you will be coming as soon as possible. Kountry Korral (Kathy Jones and Linda Rahe) are catering our meal. Lesley and Dimitra are going to lead us in worship and Tonia is going to bring an amazing word. We are going to have a Q&A time so if you have a question for Tonia, please e-mail me.

I don't know about the rest of you but this book has been life changing for me. My eyes have been opened to so much truth and I am excited to put some stuff to practice. If you got real behind in your reading, please don't let that keep you from coming on Saturday. I believe that everyone of us are going to be blessed on Saturday. And when the Lord leads you to pick up "The Woman God Designed," be obedient. Thank you for joining me in this book study. I look forward to the next thing God brings our way.

Love,
Heather

Submission

Hello ladies! It's actually Bethany this time!! Hope you all are having a wonderful week!

REVIEW: {On Sunday, we discussed chapter 14! Some of you had some problems with this specific parts of this chapter at first, but I think that we all concluded the chapter feeling much better about it! We are 'God's fruit and therefore should taste like something that fell from His tree.' We are our husbands window to know, to love, and to understand what God's love for us is all about! Is your window clear? Open? Or is it closed or streaked up?? Covered by mini-blinds or curtains?}

Now onto Chapters 15, 16, & 17! (our homework for this coming Sunday)

SUBMISSION! I know some of us must have cringed a little when we found out this topic for discussion within the next couple of chapters! I struggle with this! But before reading, I asked myself what I thought submission was, and this is what I came up with:

I believe submission is that point in our relationship with God, when we no longer feel that we HAVE to, but rather it is our desire in order to please Him. It is a matter of respect. I do not want to stray from His commands or His will for my life, but I RESPECT Him, I am REVERENT to Him, and I DESIRE to do whatever He asks of me.

What is your definition of Submission? What did you think it was before reading these chapters? And did your definition change afterwards?

I love how Tonia says "God has given us free will, but when we surrender that free will back to Him, we will have the potential to share in His glory." "He could use His power to make us do right, but in doing so He would rob us of the joy and glory that comes when we finally learn what is right and exercise our freedom to do it."

When I read that last statement, something just clicked in my spirit - it all began to make sense. We appreciate things after we trudge through the trenches. When we are covered from head to toe in mud, exhausted, and on the verge of giving up -- we don't always understand why we have to experience such things and we wonder why God isn't rescuing us from it....but once it's all over with, when we are on the rainbow side of the storm -- we are filled with joy because we survived! We learned something vital to our growth -- and I am always so excited when I get to give God the glory for giving me the grace to overcome!

In chapter 16 it discusses the blessings of submission. What did you think about the section that talked about the women whose husbands are unbelieving? I have never been shown this perspective!! Through my submission to God, my husband is sanctified (set apart for)! Which means that because of our relationship with God, our husbands are given wisdom and grace for our sake! I have witnessed this first-hand, but I never knew this was the reason! WOW!! This is so encouraging!! Through prayer, through intercession and through our demeanor, with God's help we can change the heart of our unbelieving husband! I am interested to know what some of your thoughts are about this?? Have you witnessed this? Did you know this already??

What are your thoughts about Sarah? What did you appreciate about her? What did you dislike?? She set an amazing example of a submissive woman!

Unity is the goal in our relationships - Oneness - Submission is a vital role in unity!

Sorry for the lengthy blog, but Heather asked me to write this week - and you guys know how hard it is for me to keep things short! Plus three chapters is really hard to paraphrase when there is so much information packed into each one! Hope you all have a wonderful week!! Travel safely!! Hope to see you Sunday!!

Love,

Bethany

The Big Picture!

Hang in there girls! I have heard that some of you are feeling guilt and condemnation after reading the last 2 chapters. I guarantee you that this is not Tonia's heart. I shared with you last week a particular illustration. This book to me is like looking at the picture on the puzzle box before dumping out all the pieces. It is a guideline. It is a picture of God's heart. But just like many puzzles, sometimes the pieces get lost or distorted. The pieces of your life are much different than mine. But our goal is the final picture, so we follow the guideline. Not everyone will end up with the same results. Your life will have different twists and turns. I will have obstacles that you will never face and visa versa. Some of you have been through a divorce. And quite honestly one or more of you may be headed in that direction. But how did God want marriage to look? You can't work on something when you don't know what it should look like. How can you remodel a home with no blueprints? Tonia taught on the difference in "logos" and "rhema". God has given us written scripture and has given us great teachings through talented writers (logos). But we serve a God that wants to speak to you specifically about your situation (rhema). Don't put God in a box. He is your God and He want's to speak to you about your life.

Love you all,

Heather

Knowledge is Good

For those of you that are caught up in your reading, you know that chapters 11 & 12 were a change from the first 10 chapters. Tonia went from story telling to a history lesson. The response that I got in the class was awesome. You ladies are growing and loving every minute of it. And a big reason for that is that you finally understand. I love how Tonia writes. She speaks our language and we begin to relate and find our self in the book. Then all of the sudden she shows us why we are the way we are. I said on Sunday that it is so important to find the root of any problem. When you go out to pick weeds in your yard, you must get root and all. If not, you can plan on picking weeds again in about a week or two. For many of us, this is an example of our life. We deal with the fruit and not the root. But when we allow God to join us in the journey, He will take all of it and leave nothing behind. I think my favorite part of Chapter 12 was when she explained first nature and second nature. How many of us have said, "Oh this is just second nature to me."? I know I have. But isn't it incredible to know that once we are saved our second nature is now just a habit? Habits can change because they have no control over us. We can find our way back to our first nature. God's best is possible for each of us. I feel we are all one step closer to being right where we need to be. And knowledge is a big part of that. We are learning and we are changing.

This next week we are going to be covering Chapter 13. It is quite a long chapter so I wanted to give it a weekend of its own. I have gone ahead and outlined the remaining reading so you may plan ahead. My initial plan was to be finished by Spring Break. I know many of you will be gone for family vacations. But for those of us who will be in town, we are going to finish the book. So the following is our schedule.

March 6- Chapter 13
March 13- Chapter 14
March 20- Chapters 15,16, 17
March 27- Chapters 18 & 19

Then you can read Chapter 20 "Issues and Answers" before Tonia speaks on April 2nd. The luncheon will begin at 11:30 a.m. at the church. We will have a catered lunch from Kountry Korral. So if you will be attending, I need to know as soon as possible. It is going to be an amazing day.

So like I said, Knowledge is a good thing. I pray that your appetite to study the Word of God is increasing. Tonia, if you don't mind, we would love to know some of the reference tools you use in your study time. Sometimes just knowing where to start can cause a snowball effect.

I love you girls and I am pumped at what God is doing in all of us!!

Heather

Half Way There

Are you girls wondering what the next assignment is? I'm so sorry but our home computer has been sent off to have some work done on it. I feel out of the loop when I don't have access to a computer.

We are about half way through this life changing book. This coming Sunday we will be discussing Chapters 11 & 12. I read both of them Monday while soaking in a hot bath. So take some time for yourself and do some reading. Tonia is showing us in chapters 11 & 12, why we are the way we are. God has a perfect design and our goal should be to recognize that and ask Him to help us get back there. I personally feel like there has been a thorn festering in my soul for many years and it is now working it's way out. I will be honest, I am uncomfortable. No one ever purposely wants to admit that they have possibly been the problem all along. God is showing me the role that I play in my own life. Has anyone else had a change in perspective? The one word that keeps coming to mind is ACTIVE. I must become active in doing what I know I should do. I have been lazy in so many areas. My ministry and marriage are only two of them. I am going to purposely DO! Every morning I am starting my day with asking the Lord to show me and to help me. What about you? What are you learning?

Love
Heather

Slowing Down

Hey there ladies! Are we learning alot or what? I am challenged and strengthened every chapter I read. On Sunday we discussed Chapter 8. There was so much information that we didn't even get to Chapter 9. So the assignment for next week is just adding Chapter 10. We will review 9 and 10 next Sunday. I pray that each of you are growing in your understanding of who God is and who you are in Him. We will never reach a place where we can't increase in the wisdom of God. This book is only the beginning. So let's just slow down and take our time. I don't want to miss one thing that the Lord is trying to show me or you.

For those of you who haven't been able to attend the study on Sunday afternoons, I wanted to let you know that Tonia will be here on Saturday April 2nd. We will be hosting a Ladies Luncheon with Tonia as our guest speaker. Please put it on your calendar. It will begin at 11:30 and go until 2:30.

So I let all of you know that Chapter 8 is my very favorite. What is your favorite? And I would love to know why. I love how our God is so personal. We serve an amazing Savior and He wants to walk right beside us revealing Himself to us in every way. Just give Him access to every part of your heart. He doesn't want to be a guest but He wants to be a resident.

Super Bowl Sunday

I was pleasantly surprised at the turn out tonight. Weather, Super Bowl and no heat in the church weren't enough to keep us away. We discussed Chapters 6 & 7 and what spoke to us the most. There is so much rich material in these few pages. One of my favorite statements that Tonia made in Chapter 6 was found on page 71. She said, "people who love deeply don't need the rules, because their love leads them to do naturally what the rule requires." I love being reminded that "God is not interested in perfection, he wants your heart." I want loving God to be my highest goal. How about you? In chapter 7 we learned about hearing the voice of God. We are each one important to God and He wants to speak rhema to each of us. We were challenged to "hear responsively." When God speaks, obey. Let your prayer life be led by the Spirit. God desires relationship with you and He has so much to show you.
We are now moving forward to Chapters 8 & 9. When I got home from our meeting, I jumped in a hot bath with my book. This was my second time to read chapter 8 and I promise it won't be the last. I plan on reading and rereading until I get it thoroughly. It is my favorite chapter thus far. I have been challenged like never before. Isn't it funny how all of us are different? This chapter may not speak the same way to you but it has been life changing to me. Please keep reading. If you have gotten behind, it's never too late to catch up. I'm not going anywhere. And if you don't finish until summertime, I will still be willing to answer any questions you might have. You are changing and growing every day. I am so proud of all of you.

Always Amazed,
Heather