That's a mouthful of a way to start, but I felt it appropriate. This month is May. We are in the final chapter of our first Bible study guide- Having A Mary Heart In A Martha World by Joanna Weaver. It has been such a wonderful study and fellowship with you ladies. I have thoroughly enjoyed it. I have learned so much, and I feel like I have grown so much through this study. When we started I was pretty much two personalities. Half the year I would be Mary, then summer would hit and Martha would push Mary out of the picture completely. So looking at my personality and comparing last year to this year, last year I was crazy and stressed and all over the place trying to get ready for summer. This year, I'm calm. I'm not stressed, I'm spending my mornings in the Living Room studying, and my afternoons in the Kitchen being busy. I'm starting to find that balance between Mary and Martha. I'm starting to understand the story Elizabeth George shares in A Woman After God's Own Heart about her friend Karen. Karen was in charge of the annual women's retreat one year, and she handled every challenge "graciously and put her administrative genius to work with each crisis." Everyone around her was frazzled and crazy and stressed trying to get their jobs done, but every day around the same time Karen would disappear. One day Elizabeth was looking for her and found her in a room alone, studying and praying and simply spending time with God. Elizabeth left her alone, and an hour later a calm, peaceful Karen appeared and handled the crises gracefully and calmed the other ladies' anxieties with her peace. I'm not sure I have that kind of peace, and no one has ever accused me of grace, but I'm starting to understand how it's possible.
June is coming up quickly. For my family, June is the craziest month of the year. Absolutely every day is jam packed from 6 am to midnight pretty much. I'm the director of Vacation Bible School, we have the national Association meeting this year in Fresno, we have missionaries coming, we have church camp, we have cleaning to do to get ready for the company coming in July, we have family coming and going. I know for other women June is insane too. Summer break is starting, church camp, band camp, school shopping for colleges, other things normal people do when school is out. Point being, June is crazy. When it begins, remember to take your time to hide away alone and spend time with God. Try to find that balance and peace to keep your calm and not kill your kids. Enjoy each day of this coming summer. It'll go by quickly, and you'll never have this summer again. I know that sounds like an admonition to a group of high school students, which none of us are (that meet at panera anyway), but it applies aptly to the married ladies, the mothers, the working women, God gave you each day for a reason. Spending all of your time in the Kitchen steals the joy of spending time in the Living Room relaxing and resting with God and your family.
Since this is the last chapter of this study, and since next month is absolutely crazy, we're gonna take a break for the month of June. The last Saturday of June falls on the last day of church camp. So I know several of us won't be there. Our next Bible Study book is going to be Growing in Wisdom & Faith - A Study in James by Elizabeth George. It's part of the A Woman After God's Own Heart series, and the lessons are short, designed to be completed in under a half hour. There's 25 Lessons, it's in a study and note/answer format, and because the lessons are so short and so numerous, we're going to try to double up the lessons per month. So each month we will review two lessons at a time. If it proves to be too much to handle, we can slow down and back up if we need to. I'm quite excited for this next study, I believe that many of us need to understand it, myself included. I think the change of format will grab our attention and make it easier to follow. And I think that many of us need the encouragement and messages from James too. I hope you enjoy this coming study! Oh! I suppose I should tell you where to find it and the expected costs.
Barnes & Noble ... 8.99 -Soft Cover 7.37-Nook Book
Amazon ...0.99-8.99 for Soft Cover 7.19- Kindle
Parable ... 8.99 - Soft Cover
CBD.com ... 6.99 - Soft Cover 7.19 - eBook
www.elizabethgeorge.com ... 9.00
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. ~ Philippians 4:23
