Women's role in the church

My husband and I had an interesting day in church on Sunday. We walked out of our Sunday School class. For reasons unknown to either of us, one of the female members was teaching the class that day. (Our class is large and co-ed.) I think what upset me the most was all of the men sitting in the class, willing to be taught by a woman. I'm not sure if this is ignorance as to what the Bible teaches about women in leadership/teaching roles or whether they don't care what the Bible says. Either way, we were very saddened and plan to start looking for another class to attend, if the Lord desires to keep us in this town. (Keith has applied for a couple of positions back in GA, so we'll see what the Lord has.)

Brrrrrr!

It is a very COLD, rainy day here in SC! I'm planning to stay in and "hibernate" today. I'm making a pot of chili for supper (see recipe here). I hope to get all of my laundry done so I can curl up a few minutes with a good book. I love cold, winter days! :)

More women are now single

According to this article, 51% of women in the United States live without a spouse. Upon reading the title, I thought "oh ok...well, they must want to be married and are 'looking'". Not so.

According to one of the single women interviewed:

"I get to make the choices myself about where I live, how I live, how I decorate my house," she says.

I noticed one thing about that sentence..."I" is used 4 times! It seems this is the common thinking of today's independent women.


From a demographer:

"There used to be this saying, '22 skidoo,' that is, when young women got to be the age of 22 they were expected to go off and get married and be in another household," says William Frey, a demographer at The Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. "That's a long time in the past."

In the past? I'll agree; it sure does seem that way. Is that supposed to be a good thing? Are we a more "enlightened" people because we don't subject women to the "menial" task of getting married young and having children? I don't think so. The world sees freedom and opportunities. I see 26 year olds who act like they are 15 in terms of emotional maturity. All one needs to do is pick up a copy of Cosmo (not something I'd advise) and flip through the pages. Those pages are filled with instant gratification, looking out for #1, meaningless relationships with the opposite sex (all in the name of "having a good time"), and a carefree life. This is the new and improved way of life? I think not. Being a wife and mother teaches you to think of someone other than yourself. God has used marriage to teach me time and again that it's not all about ME. And I feel certain that He'll continue to teach this lesson to me when/if He blesses us with children.


**I don't get involved in many "controversial" type issues and won't post much about them. I believe there is value in debating but I want my blog to mostly revolve around homemaking and being a helpmeet to my husband. But this article really stuck out to me when I read it, so I decided to post my opinion.

Rough Night

I am extremely tired today. Word of advice: don't eat chicken fingers, french fries, and 2-3 servings of (caffeinated!) Coke less than 2 hours before you go to bed. It's a bad idea!

Hot Hamburger Dip

I hope that everyone is enjoying their start to the weekend. I just finished helping Keith with something related to his job search. Now he is outside cleaning out the litter box :) and I'm headed off to shower and begin our day. I wanted to post the recipe for last night's dip before I turned off the computer. Warning: this is not healthy at all, so we save it for a special occasion!

Hot Hamburger Dip

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
1/4 c. ketchup
1 8oz. package cream cheese
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Saute ground beef until browned; add onion and cook until tender. Drain. In heavy saucepan, add remaining ingredients and stir over low heat until cheese melts. Add meat mixture. Spoon into a chafing dish and keep warm; serve with corn chips. Yields 1 quart.

Happy Weekend!

Keith is on his way home and I'm on my way to the kitchen to cook a slightly non-traditional supper: Hamburger Dip with Fritos. :) We try to make Friday night our date night so I make the meal simple and easy, unless it's a special occasion. I especially want this weekend to be as stress-free as possible. He has been experiencing a lot of work-related stress. Not the normal, "healthy" kind, but the kind that may send him looking for another job. However, I've been reminding myself all day: God is in control. He will lead us where He wants us to be.

I hope that everyone has a great, fun, relaxing weekend with your loved ones!

Books, Books, Books!

I love to read. Let me rephrase that: I LOVE to read. In the past, most of what I have read has been Christian fiction but I decided recently to branch out a little and read some non-fiction also. Once I finish a book, I'd like to post a review here. At least, that is the plan. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep up.

My Current Reading List

Non-fiction:

This Little Church Stayed Home by Gary E. Gilley. So far, this book is very good. It's a tough read in some places, though. I also read the "prequel" to this book, This Little Church Went to Market, which was a sad but very thorough picture of a lot of modern churches today.

Created To Be His Helpmeet by Debi Pearl. I'm only on the third chapter and the Lord has taught me so much through this book. I can't wait to finish the rest!

Fiction:

The Last Sin Eater by Francine Rivers. This book is...different. It's not that I dislike it; it's just "different" from most Christian novels. I hate to keep using that word, but that's the only description I have so far! Hopefully I will have more to say when I finish. :)

Aquariums...and the rest of our weekend

This weekend we bought an aquarium. I'm not talking a goldfish size; I'm talking a 44 gallon aquarium! Keith had a much smaller one before we married and has wanted one for a while now so this past weekend, after seeing one a couple of times at PetSmart that we liked, we finally took the plunge (no pun intended!) on Friday and bought it. Silly me, I thought that you just put your decorations in there, along with the rocks, some water conditioning stuff, the water, and voila! You have an under-the-sea habitat. Not exactly. It took a whole Saturday afternoon, 3 trips to PetSmart, but we finally have an aquarium! With water! And everything is working! Alas, no fish yet, though. That's yet another step. :)

We had a nice day of worship yesterday. We haven't gotten as involved in our current church as we'd like to be. We've lived here a year and began visiting this church during the summer. It's very hard for me to meet new people. I wouldn't label myself as "shy" exactly; I just don't like "new" things. Please pray for us that we will become more involved in serving in this church and we'll find like-minded brothers and sisters in Christ and form friendships with them.

Trusting God

"O Lord of Hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee."
Psalm 84:12

"Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you."
Psalm 116:7

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
Isaiah 26:3

I get to spend the day with my husband!

Keith ended up working all night so he'll be home about 9:30 or so this morning. He intends to "spend the day with his wife". He has been working very long hours for a couple of months now so we don't get to spend as much time together as either of us would like. Needless to say, I won't have the chance to blog anymore today! Have a great weekend!

Blogging Question

Question for all you experienced bloggers out there...

How do I add links to favorite websites or other blogs I read?

Our Furbabies!

Today was a very hard day for me in trusting God to bless us (or not to bless us) with children. So, I've decided to show what God has blessed us with: two adorable furbabies that might as well be our children!



This is Gracie. She's 10 and is quite a feisty kitty! She only weighs 6 lbs. but that doesn't stop her from putting her brother, Leo, in his place every day! Yes, her eyes are fine. In that picture, she is sitting in our bathroom window while the sun was streaming in; that's why her pupils are so tiny. lol

This is our "baby", Leo. He's 5 but still acts like he's a 5 month old kitten. He is so playful. Leo is our loveable one. He likes to crawl onto my lap and sleep. Sometimes it's when I'm typing on the computer!

So those are the "babies" God has entrusted us with so far! I will post a couple of more pictures of them in the next day or so. Don't worry; I have no intentions of boring anyone with cat pictures! :)

Lack of motivation...

Here it is, 10am and I'm still sitting in my pajamas. Yes, my pajamas (hanging head in shame). I felt a little sick this morning so I decided to take things slowly. Well, now, I'm feeling better but have no motivation. I need some advice from any blog readers out there: what do you do to get motivated on those inevitable "off" days?

I'm off to at least get dressed and get something done. I will check back in and report my progress. :)

Happy New Year!

Happy 2007 to everyone! I pray God's protection and blessings on you in this new year.

I've been praying and thinking about some things I'd like to do this year; some goals I'd like to work toward. I don't consider them "resolutions" because they will always be changing and evolving; I'll never "arrive" at any of these.

Johanna's Goals for 2007:

1. Spend more time in the Word. Read it daily and not just during my "devotional time". Immerse myself in it.

2. Develop a deeper prayer life. So much of my prayer time is spent in surface prayers (protect Keith today at work, protect me as I work here at home) that I'm afraid my prayer life has become shallow. Lord, forgive me. Help me to spend more time just communing with You.

3. Pray daily for Keith. I am guilty of not praying for my wonderful husband every day.

4. Be the best homemaker I can be, both for the Lord and for my husband. I will never be perfect but I can do my job as unto the Lord, instead of rushing to mop the floor/do the laundry/whatever just so I can relax. This is the job that God has called me to perform; I need to do the best that I can, for His honor and glory.

5. Take better care of my body; treat it as a temple. I frequently fill my body with "junk" instead of healthy foods.

My hope for this year, though, is that God will open my womb and give us a child/children in 2007. I pray every day God will give me patience as I wait on Him in this area.


Does anyone have any goals for 2007? If you'd like to share, I'd love to hear them.

Merry Christmas!

I apologize for not keeping this blog updated. The craziness of the holidays have really gotten in the way! My goal for next year is to update 2-3 times a week.

In the meantime, I wanted to wish anyone who reads this a very Merry Christmas!

A Busy Week Ahead...and Cold Relief

My mom is coming for a visit this week! Yay! She hasn't seen our new house yet (we moved here in January) and I'm so excited she is coming.

I have been busy cleaning and planning some last minute errands in preparation. One unexpected thing that has come up is that Keith has a cold. It's a typical, fall, head cold but he is miserable, I can tell. So far I'm planning to make some homemade chicken noodle soup. Does anyone else have some proven remedies?

Frugal Friday: Pack a lunch for your husband!

I pack my husband's lunch about 95% of the time. This is saving us a minimum of $4 a day (one of the cheapest meals around his workplace). Most of the time I fix last night's leftovers but sometimes it's simply a sandwich, chips, dessert, and a drink. I am blessed in that my husband is easy to please and will eat anything I pack!

How did I get here?

My first entry into the blogsphere! Woohoo!

I thought this was a great time to explain how God called me "back home". I grew up in a family that taught me that I must attend college and "make something of myself". As such, I attended college and graduate school. I have a Master's degree in Early Childhood Education and taught for 4 years in the public school system (1 year in a private school). All was well, but I dreamed of the day when "my prince would come" and I could have babies and become a stay-at-home mom. At the time, I bought into the mentality that being a stay-at-home mom was acceptable whereas being a stay-at-home wife was simply strange and virtually unheard of.

Fast forward to October 20, 2003: the day God brought my prince to me. Until that time, I wondered if God wasn't making me an "old maid". lol We were married on October 23, 2004; both of us at the ripe, old age of 27. :)

We enjoyed our newlywed life. We would each leave for work in the morning and come home, telling each other of our day's adventures. Life was fine for a while until I started to feel guilty. Guilty when I couldn't get the laundry finished. Guilty when I neglected lesson plans to spend time with my new husband. Guilty when dinner was late because I had to stay late at school for a meeting. Guilty when I had to leave him to go attend PTO meetings. I began to feel like I was just mediocre. A mediocre wife and a mediocre teacher. When I worked hard to be the best wife I could be, my teaching suffered. When I worked hard to be the best teacher I could be, my home (and husband) became neglected and suffered. I truly felt like I was burning my candle at both ends: trying to be a great wife and a great employee. It wasn't working.

It was around this time that I found a lot of resources on the internet about becoming a keeper at home. I began to wonder if this was the step God wanted me to take....and how would I ever get my husband's consent? lol Sure enough, when I first presented this idea to him, he was dead-set against it. He didn't see how we could "make it" on one income; he thought I should work full-time until we had our first child. I began to pray that if this was the road God wanted us to take, He would show us clearly. Of course, that is just what He did. He did it in the form of a new job offer for my husband that required us to move. Because my husband requested it, I did apply to different school districts in the area but my heart was heavy at the thought of going to work--again--at the end of the summer. Around this time, the Lord had been working on my husband's heart also. Finally, one day he said that he felt the Lord was telling him that my husband needed to trust Him fully...and step out on faith by letting me "come home". I was thrilled but still wanted to know...for certain...this was where God wanted me. Guess what the ultimate sign was? I only received one call to interview for a position. I had a Master's Degree and 5 years of teaching experience and only ONE call for an interview? By the time this principal called, it was late summer, and my husband and I had already decided it was the Lord's will that I stay at home so I turned down the request for an interview. When I turned it down, I felt an incredible sense of peace in my heart.

Since then, I have been FAR from perfect in my role as keeper of the home. I could wallpaper a bedroom with the schedules I have created...my goal in all of them being to "become more organized!" LOL Dinner is still late a lot of nights, I still get behind on the laundry and the cleaning. But my husband is happy and appreciates a wife who is not stressed out when he steps in the door. (Most nights she's not stressed. lol) Financially, we have marveled at the way God has provided for us; He truly does meet ALL our needs. I am thankful for this time God has given me to focus on being a godly wife to my husband and being a keeper of the home He has given us. We pray that in His timing He will bless us with children, but we are resting in Him and trusting His timing for that.