Homemaking 911

Go here to read; Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4,

Now we have taken Chaos, subtracted distractions and decisions, divided, using delegation and added in our goals.  The remaining part of this equation is:  Spiritual Disciplines.

“Psalm 42:7 reads ‘Deep calls to deep.’ Perhaps somewhere in the subterranean chambers of your life you have heard the call to deeper, fuller living. You have become aware of the frothy experiences and shallow teaching. Every now and then you have caught glimpses, hints of something more than you have known. Inwardly you long to launch out into the deep.”

- Richard J. Foster

in Celebration of Discipline the Path to Spiritual Growth.

It is hard for me to place this section at the end of this set of tools.  Frankly, if you start here, the rest will be so much easier, but most women desperate for help in their homes do not want to hear about spiritual disciplines.

It seems like I would be advising you to add more to your ever growing to-do list. The fact is if you are so wrapped up in Jesus you can avoid getting upset, getting distracted, and getting overwhelmed. Go ahead and multiply these spiritual disciplines. The rest of the equation will be so much easier.

Spiritual Disciplines

Occasionally

i.            Retreats (Silent retreat, family retreats, country Lake)

ii.            Moms Day Out (A day to refresh and enjoy yourself….shopping, manicure, haircut, library, bookstores)

iii.            Conventions/Speakers (CHEK, Indy Conference, Cincinnati Conference)

b.       Weekly

i.            Sabbath Day of Rest. (worship, Small Group Bible Studies)

ii.            Fasting (food, newspapers, magazine, advertisements, television, media, telephone, computer, eating out, TV, friends) from anything that distracts you from your relationship with God and the time you need to spend with Him in His Word daily.

c.       Daily

a.      Prayer (alone and with spouse) Divorce rates for couples who pray together according to some statistics is less than 1 in 1000 couples who regularly pray together outside of mealtime end in divorce.

b.      Scripture reading (Lots of choices here…. Straight through, Bible in a year, topical studies)

c.       Music (Godly music, CDs, in the car, during chores, you might even cycle through the popular music, hymns, patriotic music)

d.      Books/curriculum choices (Look for books and curriculums that honor and revere God, not just a scripture verse thrown at the bottom of a page.)

e.      Practice joyfulness!

I love this verse in Habakkuk 3:17:

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,

though the olive crops fails and the fields produce no food, though

there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls…” (Wow, this

guy is having some problems.)

Read the next verse:

He said, “Yet I will REJOICE IN THE LORD, I will be JOYFUL IN GOD MY

SAVIOR” (v. 18).

He is going to REJOICE because, verse 19 says, “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to

go on the heights”

Wait a minute!  Forgive my modern day translation:

“Though there is no food ready for dinner, and there is no money in the account, though the sickness gets worse, and the pain persists, though my children are out of control, and my spouse does not appreciate me, though I feel like I am buried in never ending work, and I cannot get through a single subject without someone interrupting, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

Wow!  How many moms have you talked to lately that had that kind of joy?  Do you have it in your home?

Some of us gave up a lucrative career, some of us gave up the years we fantasized enjoying some freedom from our kids as they climbed cheerfully on a school bus.  Some of us have given up many of our own ambitions and freedoms so that we could raise these young ones the way the Lord is calling us to raise them…Some have alienated family and friends who simply could not understand our desires to home school our children…Oh, to have such grace in our hearts that we JOYFULLY make sacrifices unto our God even when we are wheezing and worn out!

Joy comes from trusting and obeying God’s word.  Joy comes from knowing God is working to accomplish His purposes in all things for the GOOD of those who love him.

And families, when you are truly discouraged, go to Jesus.  This sounds so trite, but if you are a believer then you know this.  Jesus’ body was dead, lifeless.  It lay in a tomb for three days; you cannot get any more dead than that.

And by power of God, Christ was resurrected.  If you think he cannot offer you encouragement and a spirit of joy on those hard days, you are underestimating Him.

Dare we say that JESUS cannot bring us joy?

Maybe you are not sure.  Maybe you do not know my Jesus.  Here is what Anne Graham Lotz has to say about him:

He is enduringly strong.
He is entirely sincere.
He is eternally steadfast.
He is immortally gracious.
He is imperially powerful.
He is impartially merciful.
He is the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizons of the globe.

He is God’s Son.
He is the sinner’s savior/
He is the captive’s Ransom.
He is the breath of Life.
He is the centerpiece of civilization.
He stands in the solitude of Himself.

He is august and He is Unique.
He is unparalleled and He is unprecedented.
He is undisputed and he is undefiled.
Je is unsurpassed and He is unshakable.

He is the lofty idea in philosophy.
He is the highest personality in psychology.
He is the supreme subject in literature.
He is the unavoidable problem in Higher criticism.
He is the fundamental doctrine of theology.
He is the Cornerstone, the Capstone, and the stumbling Stone of all religion.
He is the miracle of the ages.
My Jesus is Everything.

Now, let me leave you with some final thoughts.

To go from Chaos to Order:

Eliminate Distractions (Noisemakers, The telephone, The TV)

Eliminate Decisions (plan ahead for meals, paperwork, the grocery)

Divide using Delegation

Add in your Goals

And Multiply your Spiritual Disciplines.

Ruth Graham Lotz says:  If all you ever attempt is that which you know you can do, or have the resources for, how will you ever discover what he can do?  Ladies, if you desire to have an orderly home, I say:  Go for it!  But do not get caught up in the comparison game!  We always compare a person’s worst moment to our best intentions, OR we compare our worst with another’s person’s “perfect” exterior.  Instead compare your thoughts to God’s Word on this:

He says: “Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest in your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Pray with me now — Father, we ask You now; may we experience a greater measure of  order and joy in our families than ever before.  Help us act in obedience even when we do not feel it, and create in us a new heart that seeks to be joyful in YOU.  Lord, teach us to trust in You and to do good, delighting in You and in our families.  We pray that You will be magnified and exalted in joy-filled, orderly homes.    In Jesus’ Name we pray.  Amen.

To hear this workshop in it’s entirety, you can purchase an MP3 of this workshop in our store.

Also, our book, Chaos to Order, 25 Tools Bringing Organization to Your Home may be a benefit to you.

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