What a difference....

I was thinking today of what I was doing, this time, last year. And I remember last year being a little bit stressful. And honestly, I cannot remember what exactly that made it so stressful. It may have been a combination of my last minute shopping, unfailing family drama, tons and tons of folks in the malls and on the freeways, my patience getting tested and tried, blah blah blah.... It's amazing what a whole year can do! This year was extremely different. I actually started my Christmas shopping the day after thanksgiving (YES, I DID) and I was done by the 2nd week of this month with all the shopping I needed to do. I am pretty certain that this took a lot of stress off my shoulders. I actually did not think that I would stick to my goal of shopping right after thanksgiving but I am glad I did. I picked up a couple of extra things here and there last week and yesterday but nothing major. It's truly amazing what a whole year can do! Merry Christmas Ladies! I pray that the end of this year finds you where you intended to be...and next year will bring much more favor in your life! --------------------------- ALSO don't forget to share any thoughts or words of wisdom with your fellow Righteous Women! Forward me your thoughts/words of wisdom and I will post them here.... (arighteouswoman@ymail.com) Or if you are a fellow blogger, send me your blog address and I will add them to my ad. Adios ladies!

A New Day

Today was the beginning of a new day for me. Some of you reading this right now, know exactly what I am talking about! I want to thank you for attending our first brunch. It was great and we had a fun time together. I know that there will be many more days like this and I am excited to share it with all of you. Remember to be safe, shop less and have more family time... :) Merry Christmas Righteous Women!

Circumcision - (Whoa)

Circumcision.... this is usually not a topic that women deal with. In the natural sense, this topic gears towards the male audience .... but spiritually, its a matter of the heart for both men and women. Romans 2:25-29 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law? For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. In the Jewish culture, every male child had to undergo this procedure on the eighth day after birth. Anyone who did not do this, was considered unclean/unholy. This was an outward sign of consecration and belonging to God. In the spiritual realm, circumcision of the heart is the seal of our dedication and commitment to our faith and our Father. It is our obedience to God from the heart. It is knowing what God wants us to do, and actually doing it. To be circumcised unto God is to serve Him with everything in you. It is to give Him all you have, it is to worship Him alone, and serve no other gods. Everything that goes in or comes out of us, has to be holy, right, clean and just. It is keeping our body, mind and soul as a temple where God can dwell in and manifest through. This is the condition of the heart that requires discipline and self control. The most intimate part of this is that its all about your dedication and your commitment to God.

Would I recognize you?

At one point in my life, I was going through some really major challenges, that I really did not know that I could get over it. In fact, I knew somewhere inside that I could survive it but I could not see myself getting that far. I was READY to quit. But then, I heard the Lord say "Who do you remind me of?" I had no idea how to answer this question! But I knew there was someone, there had to be..right? I really wanted to say Jesus...(sounded like a safe answer :). But you know how you grow up and act like someone in your family? Well, the Lord assured me that in due time, He would reveal it to me. The question took me to the book of Job....and his surviving story. How he was at a total natural loss but made it through someway, somehow. The story shows a man who had it all (family, riches and everything), and lost it all almost immediately....but due to all the tests that were set before him, he did not lose his place of worship in God. He was faced with rejection, poverty, sickness, loneliness, you name it. The only thing that was not destroyed was his soul. Even though, God said that his soul would be saved, Job still had to decide to keep his soul in alignment with God. Our soul is where our will lies, our mind thinks and our emotions react. The way you think of the will of God over your life, will affect the way you feel about yourself. If you keep your mind on the things of God, there is nothing that the enemy can throw at you that will distort your identity in God. Job was just one of the stories that stood out to me. Job was a just man, a noble man, a man of integrity. There are many in the bible today, read it and you'll see. God knows that you will make it and that your restoration is going to be doubly fruitful. And the best part is that the people who knew you then, and see you now, will come to you with questions on how you made it. So, my question to you today is.... who do you remind God of?

Trust in the Lord Always....

We always hear thing like "be strong and courageous", "trust in the Lord", "lean not on your own understanding", "God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind"...but its easier said than done, right? It's only when you are going through the situation that you are able to gauge your level of trust in God, your level of faith and how much you can encourage yourself or even receive encouragement from someone else. As women leaders, we have to learn to encourage ourselves in circumstances like these. We are responsible for our responses, our actions and our choice of delivery in words. I look at the early life of David and he really should have had a stressful life but its remarkable that he is known all over the world as the man after God's own heart. Why is that? Does it have everything to do with the fact that he loved to worship? Or was it that he had figured out a way to focus on other things but his problems? I think it was a little of both. We will always be faced with challenges and ill-happenings but God has called us higher. We have to choose to walk in worship and focus on God....and not the problems...