Hold Your Peace!

A peaceful evening in Morrow County, Eastern Oregon.

"You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.  Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength." ~ Isaiah 26: 3-4

"The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." ~ Exodus 14:14

Hold your peace!

That's a phrase we use when we want to tell someone to "calm down", "get a hold of yourself"...or, simply, "HUSH!"

Surely there was a little bit of that connotation associated with the phrase in chapter 14 of Exodus.  The Israelites had just left Egypt and had found out that Pharaoh was pursuing them.  Instead of trusting God and his miracles thus far, they were freaking out and accusing Moses of leading them out into the wilderness to be murdered by Pharaoh's army.

However, there's another truth we can extract from these words.   

"The LORD will fight for you"...

How does God's method of doing battle differ from ours?

"You shall hold your peace"...

"Hold" = retain, hold on to, don't let go of

How much more peaceful would our lives be if we let God handle those things that rile us up?

The best of relationships will face frustrating times now and then!

Often times, my children will become frustrated with one another---usually it's one of the little ones not "obeying" an older one.  The angered child will try over and over to make the irritating sibling bend to his/her will.  When they finally realize the other is not giving in, there are usually raised voices and resentful attitudes.

I've been training them to try to discuss the issue nicely once.  If that doesn't get the desired result, they're to come to me and let me decide if they should let it go or if I should mediate and help them out.  This makes for a much more peaceful atmosphere in our home.

I think this is what God desires to do with us.  He is willing to mediate our disagreements---and to fight our battles---so we can hold on to our peace.

Since He is the Perfect One---and we are the messed up ones---wouldn't it make sense to let Him?

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  This article was featured in Issue #96 of The Christian Home magazine.

Linking with: Teach Me Tuesdays @ Growing Home
Titus 2sDays @ The Time Warp Wife 
Women Helping Women @ Teaching What is Good 
Courtship Connection 
Modest Monday @ The Modest Mom 
Encourage One Another @ Deep Roots at Home 
Wednesday linkup @ Wholehearted Home 
Wisdom Wednesday @ Simply Helping Him 
Homemaking Linkup @ Raising Homemakers 
Wise Woman linkup 
Legacy Leaver Thursdays @ Leaving a Legacy 
HomeAcre Hop @ The Self Sufficient HomeAcre 
Matrimonial Monday @ A Proverbs 31 Wife 

My Precious...

"He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." ~ John 12:25

When we have something precious, we tend to hold on to it very tightly---not necessarily because we are selfish, but because we are so afraid to lose it.  What would my life look like if I lost "my precious?"

I know I need to work on my attitude and willingness when it comes to serving others with my life---especially in the area of hospitality.  When the opportunity for serving outside my role as wife and mom comes up, I often look for an excuse to avoid it.  In most cases, this is okay.  My ministry is to my husband and our nine kids---and with 10 people to serve, any other time is pretty limited.  However, God likes to test my heart now and then and I'm not as ashamed as I should be to say that I usually fail.

I think I'm just holding so tightly to "my precious" life that I don't want to share it with anyone.  What if the moments we're spending on other people are the last moments of our life together?  Am I the only one who tries to control every aspect of her life to make it just perfect?

"To whom much is given, much is required." ~ Luke 12:48

I used to think that this verse was just about responsibility.  However, I'm finding out that God wants me to do more with the life he's given me than just manage it responsibly.  He wants me to share the happy times with others, to use it to provide a witness of His goodness and provision, and to "offer hospitality without grumbling." ~ 1 Peter 4:9

Hope In Every Season is on Facebook!  If you like what you've read here, please follow me and keep up with the latest posts.

 

This article was featured in The Christian Home Magazine, Issue 95. 

Linking with:  Teach Me Tuesday @ Growing Home 

Tuesday Link Up Party @ The Courtship Connection 

Women Helping Women @ Teaching What is Good 

Whole Hearted Home Wednesdays  

Encouraging One Another at Deep Roots at Home

Homemaking Linkup at Raising Homemakers

Legacy Leaver Thursday  

Wise Woman  Link up

Titus 2sDays @ The Time Warp Wife 

Matrimonial Monday @ A Proverbs 31 Wife

Desire to Inspire @ A Royal Daughter 

If You Have a Craving, I Have a Cure by Sheri Rose Shepherd --- Book Review

Sometimes I read passages in the Bible that sound so great---but I have a difficult time really putting them into practice.  Ecclesiastes 5:18 is one of those verses:  "It is good for people to eat, drink, and enjoy their work under the sun during the short life God has given them, and to accept their lot in life."  As one who has always struggled with her weight, the thought of eating and drinking---while still accepting my lot in life---doesn't sound as promising as it might to someone else who has a little more self control.  It seems my lot in life, thus far, has been to eat, drink, and gain weight.

Author Sheri Rose Shepherd has been there too.  As a teenager, Sheri Rose was overweight, depressed and struggling with an eating disorder.  Over time, she's allowed God's healing to change her life and put her on a healthy path.

I've been a big fan of Sheri Rose Shepherd for about 8 years now and own several of her resources.  I even had the opportunity to hear her speak at a women's conference several years ago and was very blessed.  That's why I was super excited when I was given the opportunity to review her newest book, If You Have a Craving, I Have a Cure. 

As soon as received my free copy of the book, I flipped through it just to have a look at some of the topics.  What I saw were tons of recipes! Yay!  I love my copy of Sheri Rose's cook book, Eating for Excellence, so I was pretty sure I was going to enjoy this one as well! 

Sheri Rose offers several "craving" scenarios:  things like cravings for rest, energy, and times of celebration---and gives her readers Biblical principles, coupled with delicious healthy recipes, to help satisfy those cravings.  

One Scripture that she shares in her chapter on rest really stood out to me and is inviting me to study and pray about it further.  Isaiah 28:12, "God has told his people, 'Here is a place of rest; let the weary rest here.  This is a place of quiet rest.'  But they would not listen."  Wow!  I really crave that place of rest!

If You Have a Craving, I Have a Cure is an excellent resource for anyone wanting to find the source of their soul's unrest and the reason for feelings of emptiness or lack in many areas of their life.  I know Sheri's godly wisdom is going to help me, not only as I battle my cravings for unhealthy foods, but in several areas of my life where I need to trust God.  I encourage my readers to visit Sheri Rose online at, www.biblelifecoaching.com, and try to pick up some of her resources---you will be blessed for sure!

Thank you to Tyndale House Publishers for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. 

Hope In Every Season is on Facebook!  If you like what you've read here, please follow me and keep up with the latest posts.