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.
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.
Marriage. That word brings all sorts of thoughts and images to mind. Some are bad and others wonderful. However, since God created it, let’s go to the beginning of time and look at the original plan. God created Adam and asked him to name all the animals. After fulfilling that assignment all day, Adam realized he didn’t have a mate. (What a great teaching technique.) No one corresponded to him. Imagine his delight when God showed up with Eve. She was taken from him. Amazing! I bet she was pretty, and I wonder if she wore a flower in her hair. Either way, Adam probably felt overwhelmed.
Right away God performed the first marriage and then blessed the new couple with a job. He gave them dominion over the earth and the power to have children. Adam understood. He called his wife Eve because she would be the mother of all living. The children they had formed the first family.
God’s purposes for mankind still centers around the family. It’s no wonder Satan targets marriage. If he destroys that, so many other things tumble down. The families of the next generation suffer as well as businesses, churches, and nations because people get hurt. Just think, how many people tell stories of their dysfunctional home or difficult childhood. These people have a multitude of issues to overcome because of the damage in their formative years. Yes, the Lord can heal, but it’s a good idea to work at building our marriages.
How can we strengthen our marriage so it truly bestows life to our spouse and our children? Sue Detweiler is my guest. She has written a book on this topic, and she’s going to give us some clues by sharing a few of her own struggles.
Women today are very busy. We all carry cell phones and have access to Facebook, Twitter, texting, Instagram and Pinterest and other social media. in addition to all our family responsibilities, we pack our calendar with activities to benefit out children and use our microwaves to prepare quick meals. Most of us don’t set aside much time to rest, even though we like the thought. I find it interesting that God talked about rest in the early chapters of Genesis, and it’s a huge theme in Scripture.
I believe God knew how crazy our lives would become. He talked about rest in the early chapters of Genesis. It’s a huge theme in Scripture. Consider Genesis 2:2. “And on the seventh day God finished his work, and he rested on the seventh day.” Take a moment and think about that. God doesn’t need anything, yet he rested once he completed the creation. I don’t think he rested because he was weary. God doesn’t get tired. Instead, he wanted to show us a pattern, a balance of work and rest. I really need that.
This was a typical day for me when my children were young: a crying child woke me in the morning, and I hurried out of bed to get breakfast while his sibling hung onto my housecoat whining. Another maddening day. I stopped a squabble while trying to pay bills and then hurried off to an appointment while watching kids poke each other in the back seat. Ballet, Bible study, runny noses, a hasty lunch, a child who won’t stop crying from a minor injury. Fifteen text messages and three phone calls. The postman needed my signature. All day I ran nonstop and then fell into bed and stared at the ceiling, wishing for sleep. I’d think about resting and laugh.
Does that sound like you?
Yet Hebrews 4: 9-10 says, “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.” What does God mean by Sabbath rest?
Today I have Gwyn McCaslin as my guest. She’s going to give us her thoughts on rest.
Gwyn is a counselor in Sugar Creek, Ohio. Learn more about her here.
