I don’t know if you’ve ever had a time when you felt panicked, but I have. My youngest son is disabled. With numerous overlapping issues, he’s severe. I was homeschooling him, and I saw intelligence despite his barriers. A series of events led us to seek complete testing. The idea of testing bothered me because I worried how well he could perform with the number of problems he had. In time found a neuro-psychiatrist who came highly recommended. The doctor administered test over a few days.
At last came our final appointment. My husband and I would meet with the doctor for test results and a final diagnosis. That was the scariest day. The diagnosis he received would impact him for the rest of his life.I can recall my heart pounding and my chest tightening at the thought of driving to the office. I survived by praising God. All day I sought the Lord. I praised him for the air conditioning in the car, the blue sky, the car, the fluffy clouds, the dress I had on, my favorite color. Those prayers kept me calm enough to hear what the doctor had to say.
Think about the words Paul wrote in Philippians four: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and thanksgiving make your request known to God and the peace that passes all understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.” Those words are easy to say. Doing it can be much harder.
Today I have Maureen Pratt. She’s written a book called, Don’t Panic, which teaches how to prepare for a crisis.
What do I mean by dress for success? Do you remember seeing those photos of Adam and Eve in Sunday school when you were a kid? Illustrators always put them behind bushes, but you could tell they weren’t dressed. Even though Bible tells us they didn’t have clothes, given enough time, I believe Eve would have decorated herself in some way whether she sinned or not. Tastes differ, but on the whole, we women like pretty things. I’m fond of coordinating my clothing and jewelry. In Hawaii, it’s traditional to wear a flower in your hair. If the flower is on the left side, you are married. If you wear it on the right side, you aren’t married. I bet Eve wore a necklace of flowers. Knowing women, I believe she found a way to accessorize. That’s what we do.
I’m fond of coordinating my clothing and jewelry. In Hawaii, it’s traditional to wear a flower in your hair. If the flower is on the left side, you are married. If you wear it on the right side, you aren’t married. I bet Eve wore a necklace of flowers. Maybe she also found a way to accessorize by wearing combinations of flowers and leaves. That’s what we do.
A lot our activities revolve around what we wear. In the winter, we bundle up in heavy sweaters. In the summer, we shed those for cute blouses. I recently saw some tops with lace down the front and on the border. Even our shoes change according to the season. I wear cute sandals when it’s hot and knee high boots when it’s cold.
Americans dress for comfort and like to believe clothes don’t matter as much. However, we tend to expect some professionals to look a certain way. A white coat and stethoscope announce a doctor, and a scrub nurse dons aqua pants and top.
“God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” That’s very true on both sides of that ‘but’’ statement. In other words, men see how we look. While God observes our thoughts, the state of our heart can impact our outward appearance. The big question is, are we dressing so that we are prepared for what life offers? Maybe the day brings a challenge. Dress to meet it.
Today we’re going to talk to Denise Roberts about preparing for life by our dress.
In the OT, the tabernacle was the place where God dwelt with man. The Lord gave very specific instructions about the way his house was to be built and decorated. Later, the Israelites built the temple Solomon’s temple and then Herod’s temple.Today, however, the Bible teaches that our bodies are the temple of God. The place we meet is just a building. Notice the wording in I Corinthians:
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. This addresses immorality, but most scholars have used this verse to say we should take care of our bodies since the Holy Spirit dwells in us.
Abusing out body isn’t appropriate either. Note the Apostle’s words in Colossians: “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
On the other hand, we have Epaphroditus, who nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me. (Philippians 2) This verse confuses us because the Apostle Paul commends his friend for his commitment and service to the Lord. Does that mean we can overlook caring for ourselves in order to minister to someone? If that is true, many of us should and will ignore our physical health in order to serve God.
Practical Help:
So, what level of self-care is acceptable? Sue Badeau will guide us on this topic. She’s the mother of twenty-two children, and she knows about how to care for yourself. You may learn more about Sue here.
What is time? Seconds become minutes, and minutes become hours. Likewise, hours become days and years. Those minutes, hours and days make a lifetime. The rhythm of time controls our lives, and in our busy world, we often feel we never have enough. God created time and he has an eternal overarching plan he’s working out. We know he cares about when things happen. He told Abraham that “… At the appointed time I will return to you. . . and Sarah shall have a son.” Solomon said, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted, a time to break down and a time to build up…”
The apostle Paul added to that thought in Ephesians: “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” And in Psalms we see, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” As I age, I realize I won’t live forever here on earth. It makes me more serious about how I use time.
In order to make wise use of those moments God gave us, we’ll need to learn time management. Someone noted that if we did all the things experts recommend, like brushing your teeth a certain number of minutes, or getting the correct amount of exercise, you’d need more that twenty-four hours in a day. That means we need to decide what’s important to us and set goals.
Sheryl Giesbrecht is my guest today. When she faced stage four cancer, she gave a lot of thought to her remaining years. Listen and learn from her.
Do you need to get your home organized? Lane Jordan Burday shares thousands of tips on the topic. For more information on her ministry go to http://www.LaneJordanMinistries.com
Contact Heart of the Matter: Cynthia@clsimmons.com
